tihvary  of  trhe  Cheolojical  Seminary 

PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 


•«^l> 


PRESENTED  BY 

Rufus  H.   LeFevre 

.S.F7&5 


Zi}t  Cljilb  anb  tfje  Cfjurcf) 


APR  21  m^ 


By    ./ 
Bishop  H.  H.  Fout,  D.D. 


With  Introduction  by 

Rev.  W.  O.  Fries,  D.D. 


Dayton,  Ohio 

THE  OTTERBEIN  PRESS 

1913 


TO  THE  DEAR  MEMORY  OF 

MY  MOTHER 

WHOSE    LIFE   OF   GENTLENESS 

AND 

SELF-SACRIFICING  SERVICE 

HAS  LAID  ON  ME  A  DEBT  OF  GRATITUDE 

THAT  CAN  NEVER  BE  REPAID 

I  DEDICATE 

THIS  LITTLE  VOLUME 


%o 


THIS    little   volume   is   the    out- 
growth of  two  addresses — one 
delivered  before  the  Council  of  Evan- 
gelical    Denominations    at    Toronto, 
Ontario,  January  24,  1912;    the  other 
before  the  General  Conference  of  the 
United  Brethren  Church  at  Decatur, 
Illinois,   May  10,    1913.      In  response 
to  repeated  requests  the  work  of  pre- 
paring these  chapters  was  undertaken. 
The   task    has    been    one   of    genuine 
pleasure.    The  purpose  of  the  book  is  to 
emphasize   the    child's   rights   in    the 
Father's  family  as  set  forth  in  the  nine 
great   utterances   of  the   Master   con- 
cerning  childhood.      These  constitute 
the  magna  charta  of  the  religious  rights 
and  privileges  of  the  child.     To  exalt 
the  child  is  to  return  to  Christ,  and  to 
safeguard  its  unfolding  life  is  to  renew 
his  teaching  and  endeavor. 

— The  Author 


CONTENTS 

Dedication 5 

Introduction 11 

I 

The  Gospel  of  Childhood 17 

II 
The  Church  in  the  Home 61 

III 
The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship.  .  .      91 


Introduction 

IF  Tertullian  was  right  when  he  said,  "Keligion 
is  Batural  to  man,"  then  we  must  recognize 
the  religious  principle  as  existing  in  the  child, 
and  begin  to  train  him  as  a  religious  being  even 
before  he  has  matured  sufficiently  to  declare  his 
acceptance  of  Jesus  Christ  as  his  personal  Savior. 
That  'Taeaven  lies  about  its  in  our  infancy"  is  true, 
because  every  one  is  bom  into  this  world  with  a  re- 
ligious nature. 

The  religious  element  in  a  child  begins  to  mani- 
fest itself  early,  and  the  stages  of  development  are 
quite  noticeable.  Nanny  Lee  Eraser,  an  experienced 
and  successful  teacher  of  children,  says :  "A  child  in 
the  Beginners'  Department  learns  that  God  is  his 
Father;  a  child  in  the  Primary  Department  begins 
to  learn  that  he  is  God's  child,  and  the  relationship 
is  strengthened ;  but  a  boy  or  girl  in  the  Junior  De- 
partment begins  to  understand  what  it  is  to  have  an 
Elder  Brother,  and  to  go  one  step  further  in  under- 
standing that  there  must  be  definite  decision  for  the 
Elder  Brother." 

Many  persons  are  unwilling  to  accord  to  children 
credit  for  what  they  really  do  appreciate  and  under- 
stand of  the  gospel.  Says  one  who  has  made  care- 
ful observations  along  this  line,  "Experience  proves 
that  no  truths  are   so   readily  understood,   and  no 

11 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

facts  so  easily  grasped  as  those  that  make  up  the 
content  of  the  gospel.  We  may  ask.  Why  is  this? 
It  is  so  because  of  the  affinity  between  those  truths 
and  the  simple,  trustful  spirit  that  is  natural  to 
childhood. 

The  worth  of  the  child  to  the  church  and  to  the 
kingdom  of  God  is  worthy  of  consideration.  When  a 
child  of  ordinary  capacity,  and  destitute  of  prop- 
erty is  converted  to  God  and  admitted  to  church 
membership,  he  frequently  becomes  worth  more  to 
the  cavise  of  Christ  than  many  wealthy  persons  who 
are  converted  in  the  evening,  or  even  at  the  noon- 
tide of  life. 

The  attendance  of  children  upon  the  general  serv- 
ices of  the  church  is  a  matter  of  great  importance, 
and  merits  all  the  attention  it  is  now  receiving  from 
thoughtful  and  experienced  leaders  in  Sunday-school 
and  church  work.  Various  methods  for  securing 
their  attendance  have  been  suggested,  and  some  have 
been  sviccessfully  tried  out,  such  as  the  keeping  of  a 
record  and  giving  rewards  for  attendance,  the  com- 
bined service,  and  the  Junior  Congregation,  or  sec- 
ond service  designed  especially  for  children.  Why 
should  not  the  children,  who  constitute  fifty  per  cent, 
of  the  church's  field  and  force,  be  entitled  to  one 
service  of  public  worship  every  Sunday,  and  to  at 
least  fifty  per  cent,  of  the  pastor's  time?  Tlie  re- 
sponsibility for  children  attending  the  preaching 
service  does  not  rest  upon  any  one  individual.  Par- 
ents, church  officers,  the  Sunday-school  superintend- 
ent  and    teachers   must   all    heartily   co-operate    in 

12 


Introduction 

whatever  plan  may  he  adopted,  and  also  set  an  exam- 
ple in  cliurch-going.  The  Sunday  school  must  ac- 
cept it  as  a  part  of  its  mission  and  work  to  train 
the  child  to  church  attendance;  and  only  when  this 
is  accomplished  will  the  full  fruitage  of  effort  be 
realized. 

The  purpose  of  this  book  is  an  admirable  one — to 
emphasize  the  relation  of  the  child  to  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  as  taught  in  the  Word  of  God,  and  to  set 
forth  the  proper  attitude  of  the  church  toward  the 
child  in  view  of  this  relation.  That  there  is  some 
need  of  further  enlightenment  on  the  child's  relig- 
ious nature  and  moral  standing  before  God,  and  a 
quickening  of  the  conscience  of  some  parents  and 
teachers  touching  their  obligations  to  the  little  ones, 
cannot  be  questioned.  It  is  to  this  end  that  Bishop 
Font,  out  of  his  heart-convictions  and  experience  in 
religious  work,  aspires  to  make  a  helpful  contribu- 
tion to  those  who  are  charged  with  the  duty  of  in- 
structing and  training  the  young.  The  purpose  is 
concrete  rather  than  dogmatic,  and  appeals  more  di- 
rectly and  strongly  to  the  guardian  of  youth  than 
to  the  theologian.  The  views  exiiressed  concerning 
the  status  of  children  in  God's  kingdom  are  thor- 
oughly scriptural,  and  in  accord  with  the  general 
belief  of  the  church. 

The  mission  of  this  splendid  book  is  to  every 
home.  The  truths  taught  are  exceedingly  practical, 
and  are  set  forth  in  clear  and  forcible  language.  It 
is  a  valuable  contribution  to  the  study  of  a  vital 
teaching  of  Christianity.     Its  careful  reading  will 

13 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

provoke  deeper  thoughtfulness  and  stimulate  to 
greater  effort  in  a  realm  of  parental  and  Christian 
duty  that  means  much  to  the  individual  and  to  the 
establishment  of  Christ's  kingdom  in  the  earth. 

W.  O.  Fries. 


14 


Srije  (iogpel  of  Cfiilbijoob 


I. 

The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

THE  Christian  religion  is  unique  in  the 
emphasis  it  places  upon  childhood. 
Other  religions  ignore  or  forget  the 
child.  Mohammed  seems  to  know  nothing 
about  children.  Ancient  literature,  except 
the  Old  Testament,  is  quite  barren  of  allu- 
sions to  children.  In  the  Bible  is  found  the 
only  appreciation.  In  mythology  the  gods 
are  not  born  as  children;  they  come  upon 
the  stage  full  grown.  Evidently  childhood, 
under  the  Greek  and  Roman  civilizations, 
was  dishonored  or  ignored  or  largely  subor- 
dinated ;  but  to-day  the  child  looms  up  large 
and  splendid  on  the  horizon  of  the  world's 
attention. 

The  rise  of  interest  in  child  life  is  modern. 
There  is  not  a  child  in  all  Shakespeare,  in 
Victor  Hugo,  in  George  Eliot,  in  all  the 
first-class  writers  of  the  past  century,  ex- 
cept the  last  quarter  of  the  century.  Within 
this  period,  more  than  a  thousand  volumes 
have  been  written  on  child  life,  child  psy- 

17 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

chology,  and  child  nurture.  This  is  indeed 
an  age  of  the  child.  It  is  the  age  of  the  kin- 
dergarten; it  is  the  age  of  juvenile  courts; 
it  is  the  age  of  newsboy's  homes  and  houses 
of  reform;  it  is  the  age  of  legal  protection 
for  childhood;  it  is  the  age  when  child  life 
is  being  more  scientifically  studied  than 
ever  before  in  all  the  history  of  the  w^orld; 
it  is  an  age  of  increasing  demand  tihat 
courses  of  study  in  religious  education 
should  be  based  on  sound  pedagogical  prin- 
ciples, meeting  the  need  of  the  child  at  each 
stage  of  development.  Christianity  is  re- 
sponsible for  this  change. 

Jesus  Christ  is  the  first  great  teacher, 
who,  by  word  and  example,  was  the  friend 
and  champion  of  childhood.  In  contrast 
with  the  attitude  of  all  the  other  great  mas- 
ters of  men,  especially  outside  the  Jewish 
commonwealth,  he  loved,  honored,  and  re- 
spected cliildhood.  He  located  the  child  at 
the  very  center  of  Christian  influence.  In 
answer  to  the  question  of  the  disciples, 
"Who  is  greatest  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven?" 
Jesus  "called  to  him  a  little  child,  and  set 

18 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

him  in  the  midst  of  them."  It  was  an  object 
lesson  more  impressive  than  any  words 
that  might  have  been  spoken,  setting  forth 
the  present  and  potential  value  of  the  child, 
and  the  greatness  of  the  child  spirit.  In 
that  vision  of  peace  when  the  lion  and  the 
lamb  shall  lie  down  together,  under  the  be- 
neficent reign  of  love,  the  prophet  adds,  "A 
little  child  shall  lead  them." 

God  has  put  the  child  at  the  center,  and 
we  must  not  attempt  to  change  the  divine 
order.  The  world's  work  organizes  about 
the  child.  For  him  the  husbandman  plows 
and  sows  and  reaps;  for  him  the  builder 
builds;  and  for  him  the  miner  delves.  A 
child's  hand,  in  fact,  is  upon  the  lever  of 
every  engine;  steam  is  his  obedient  slave, 
and  electricity  is  his  wonder-working  ge- 
nie. For,  when  you  follow  the  circles  of 
human  activity,  however  wide  may  be  their 
reach,  you  will  find  that,  slowly  but  inevi- 
tably, they  draw  in  about  our  common  cen- 
ter, and  at  that  center  is  the  child. 

The  spirit  of  patriotism  centers  in  the 
child.    The  patriot  thinks  not  merely  of  his 

19 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

coimtry's  present  interests,  bnt  of  its  future 
prosperity  and  glory.  He  dreams  of  his 
children,  and  of  his  children's  children, 
down  all  the  coming  generations.  A  pa- 
triotism like  this  should  be  fostered  for  the 
kingdom  of  God.  God  called  Abraham  his 
friend;  but  he  was  looking  beyond  Abra- 
ham to  his  children,  through  whom  the  di- 
vine ideals  were  to  be  realized.  It  is  this 
which  gives  sublimity  to  the  promises  of 
God  to  Abraham.  They  reveal  the  sweep  of 
the  divine  wisdom  over  the  future. 

The  future  of  the  home,  church,  and  state 
is  wrapped  up  in  the  child.  In  the  light 
of  the  amazing  possibilities  of  childhood, 
the  picture  of  "the  child  in  the  midst,"  will 
be  studied  with  increasing  appreciation.  It 
is  worthy  to  be  immortalized  in  highest  art 
as  heaven's  estimate  of  child-life  and  its 
place  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  The  disciples 
were  dreaming  of  worldly  honors.  They 
were  thinking  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  in 
terms  of  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth.  The 
child  becomes  the  teacher,  and  they  must 
learn  the  lesson  that  true  greatness  con- 
20 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

sists  in  character  rather  than  high  position, 
that  the  spirit  of  the  child,  who  thinks  not 
of  outward  honor,  is  the  condition  of  great- 
ness in  the  Ivingdom  of  God. 

It  is  easj  to  imagine  the  expression  of 
combined  affection  and  concern  on  the  face 
of  Jesns  as  he  with  his  disciples  looked  upon 
that  little  child  in  the  center  of  the  circle. 
Some  artist  has  painted  a  picture  of  Sir 
Walter  Scott,  with  his  little  pet  Marjorie 
wrapped  up  in  his  big  south  country  plaid, 
and  his  arms  tightly  about  her;  on  Marjo- 
rie's  face  is  the  expression  of  perfect  trust 
and  joy,  and  on  the  bending  face  of  Sir 
Walter  Scott,  as  he  looked  upon  the  little 
child,  is  the  light  of  tender  affection.  That 
is  a  hint  of  how  Jesus  must  have  looked 
when  he  took  the  little  child  in  his  arms,  and 
then  set  him  in  the  midst  of  the  disciples. 

With  the  attention  of  the  disciples  fixed 
on  "the  child  in  the  midst,"  Jesus  would 
have  them  think  with  him  how  that  all  his 
ideals  and  hopes  for  the  future  of  humanity 
are  bound  up  in  the  children.  The  child  of 
to-day  is  the  potency  of  to-morrow.     Says 

21 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Amory  Bradford,  "The  inexhaustible  Christ, 
the  one  who  years  afterward  would  be  so 
full  of  God  that  divinity  would  be  exhaled 
from  hira,  as  perfume  from  the  flowers,  or  as 
light  from  the  dawn,  was  hidden  in  that 
child  in  Bethlehem."  The  Babe  of  Bethle- 
hem is  a  prophecy  of  the  possibilities  of 
every  child.  Every  mother  may  sing  above 
her  cradled  babe,  "You  may  be  a  Christ  or 
a  Shakespeare,  little  child,  a  savior  or  a  son 
to  a  lost  world." 

As  the  cliild  is,  so  the  coming  age  will  be. 
Shall  it  help  to  bring  in  the  glories  seen  by 
the  prophet  and  seer,  or  shall  the  old  world 
move  onward  unto  night?  Tremendous  is 
the  responsibility  which  rests  upon  those 
who  are  entrusted  with  child  life.  When 
the  church  has  fully  recognized  the  extent, 
value,  and  power  of  her  high  calling  she  will 
turn  to  the  religious  training  of  her  youth 
with  a  common  consent  that  here  she  must 
take  lier  stand.  Three  times  in  a  century 
God  recreates  the  world  through  childhood. 
With  each  new  generation  he  impanels  a 
new  jury  to  try  the  case  of  truth  against 

22 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

error,  and  holiness  against  sin.  If  there 
AA^ere  no  deaths  or  no  births,  we  might  well 
despair  of  the  world ;  but  the  kingdom  and 
the  King  are  forever  born  anew  in  the  life 
of  the  little  child. 

With  the  child  as  his  text,  Jesus  made 
nine  brief  statements  concerning  childlike- 
ness,  and  the  relation  of  children  to  himself 
and  to  his  kingdom.  These  cover  the  whole 
ground,  and  furnish  so  full  a  revelation  of 
God's  will  as  to  leave  no  room  for  doubt  or 
misconception. 

I. 

The  first  of  Christ's  utterances  to  be  con- 
sidered has  reference  to  admission  into  the 
kingdom,  and  really  involves  the  whole 
question  of  membership  in  it,  ''Except  ye 
turn  and  become  as  little  children,  ye  shall 
in  no  loise  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heav- 
en/' ( Matt.  18 :  3 ;  Mark  10 :  15 ;  Luke  18 : 
17. )  This  was  severe  on  the  disciples,  com- 
pletely inverting  their  notion;  rather  than 
the  children  become  like  them,  they  must  be- 
come like  the  children.     The  conclusion  is 

23 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

simply  this:  As  cliildlikeness  is  a  state  nec- 
essary to  entrance  into  the  kingdom,  child- 
hood is  the  surest  and  best  time  for  that  en- 
trance. If  Christ  says  that  adults  are  to  be- 
come as  little  children,  why  should  we  insist 
that  little  children  are  to  become  like  adults 
before  they  shall  be  recognized  as  having  a 
place  in  the  kingdom?  Moreover,  it  is  here 
definitelj^  stated  that  the  little  child  repre- 
sents the  kingdom  of  heaven,  and  that  the 
adult  sinner  must  be  converted  and  become 
as  a  little  child  if  he  shall  enter  the  kingdom 
of  heaven. 

The  deep  impression  made  by  this  inci- 
dent on  the  disciples  appears  in  the  fact  that 
it  is  related  by  all  the  synoptists.  The  les- 
son revolutionized  their  conception  of  great- 
ness, and  set  forth  not  only  the  way  into  the 
kingdom,  but  also  the  characteristic  spirit 
of  the  new  dispensation. 

11. 

In  his  second  statement,  the  Master  as- 
serts that  whoever,  having  entered  the  king- 
dom, would  become  great  in  it,  must  con- 
24 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

tinue  childlike.  ''Whoever,  therefore,  shall 
humble  himself  as  this  little  child,  the  same 
is  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom,  of  heaven/^ 
(Matt.  18:4.)  The  Master  here  impresses 
the  lesson  that  the  law  of  entrance,  and  the 
law  of  growth  in  the  kingdom  ai'e  identical. 
The  very  qualities,  which  fit  a  child  for  re- 
ceiving the  kingdom,  prepare  a  man  for 
progress  in  it. 

The  phrase,  "humble  himself,"  is  very  ex- 
pressive, suggesting  the  thought  of  volun- 
tary self-mastery,  and  self-subjection.  The 
error  of  the  disciples  lay  not  in  their  desire 
to  be  great  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  but  in 
their  ideal  of  greatness.  Aspiration  is  not 
the  same  as  ambition;  it  is  better,  for  it 
looks  Godward,  while  ambition  looks  man- 
ward.  Jesus  did  not  rebuke  the  desire  to 
be  great,  but  told  how  to  direct  it. 

Humility,  which  here  represents  child- 
likeness,  not  only  leads  to  greatness,  but  is 
greatness.  Humility,  reverence,  docility, 
frankness,  faith,  the  unsuspecting  and  for- 
giving disposition,  are  the  childlike  quali- 
ties, and  they  are  alike  the  qualities  of  even 

25 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

the  greatest  men.  When  MacMahon  re- 
turned victorious  from  the  battle  of  Ma- 
genta, all  Paris  came  out  to  welcome  him. 
IMany  were  the  honors  heaped  upon  the 
brave  bronzed  soldier.  As  he  was  passing 
in  triumph  through  the  streets  and  boule- 
vards, a  little  child  ran  out  toward  him  with 
a  bunch  of  flowers  in  her  hand.  He  stooped 
down  and  lifted  her  up  before  him,  and  she 
stood  there,  her  arms  twining  about  his 
neck,  as  he  rode  on.  This  simple  exhibition 
of  gentleness  toward  a  little  child  pleased 
the  people  more,  and  seemed  a  more  beauti- 
ful act  in  their  eyes  for  the  moment,  than 
all  the  memory  of  his  heroic  deeds  on  the 
battlefield.  Men  are  greatest  and  best,  not 
when  they  are  wrestling  with  the  world,  not 
when  they  are  putting  forth  the  startling 
qualities  of  power,  not  when  they  are  play- 
ing the  hero  in  great  contests,  but  when  they 
are  exhibiting  most  of  the  spirit  of  a  little 
child. 

III. 
After  announcing  that  the  way  to  great' 
ness  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  was  by  child- 

26 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

like  humility,  Jesus  passes  from  this  charac- 
teristic of  the  child  to  the  child  himself,  and 
asijs/^And  tohoso  shall  receive  one  such  lit- 
tle child  in  my  name  receiveth  me."  (Matt. 
18:5;  Mark  9:37;  Luke  9:48.)  Nothing 
could  be  more  intensely  personal  or  more 
finely  dramatic.  The  children  are  recog- 
nized as  the  special  envoys  of  the  King  of 
kings.  Some  one  has  well  said,  "There  is 
enough  in  this  statement,  even  if  it  stood 
alone,  to  furnish  the  grounds  for  the  most 
elaborate  and  painstaking  system  of  shep- 
herding the  most  obscure  and  neglected 
children  on  earth."  To  receive  the  child  is 
to  receive  Christ,  and  to  receive  Christ  is  to 
receive  God.  The  child  is  the  miniature  of 
the  divine ;  as  a  drop  of  dew  can  mirror  the 
sun,  so  the  child  life  reflects  the  divine  life. 
The  child  is  the  miracle  of  Eden  repeated,  a 
new  creation  fresh  from  the  hand  of  God. 

To  receive  children  in  Christ's  name, 
means  to  care  for  them  as  Christ  would  have 
them  cared  for.  And  the  first  thing  is  to 
recognize  that  they  belong  to  the  kingdom. 
The  second  thing  is  to  keep  them  in  the 

27 


The^Child  and  the  Church 

kingdom.  This  is  primarily  the  responsi- 
bility of  the  church.  Even  as  the  problem 
of  citizenship  is  to  keep  every  child  true  to 
its  own  land,  rather  than  to  naturalize  the 
native  born,  so  it  is  the  work  of  the  church 
to  keep  the  child  true  to  its  sweet  and  fresh 
allegiance  to  the  kingdom  of  the  Father. 
Every  child  born  into  the  world  belongs  to 
Christ  at  the  beginning. 

IV. 

The  fourth  utterance  of  our  Lord  begins 
with  a  word  of  caution  used  in  pointing  to 
danger.  "Take  heed  that  ye  despise  not  one 
of  these  little  ones."  (Matt.  18:10.)  The 
mildest  meaning  of  the  word  "despise"  is, 
to  undervalue ;  the  harshest  is,  to  pour  con- 
tempt upon.  The  fault  of  the  disciples  then, 
is  the  fault  of  the  church  now — that  of  un- 
dervaluing children  and  child  life.  The 
making  of  a,  wrong  estimate  results  in  all 
manner  of  wrong  going.  The  provision  the 
church  makes  for  the  care  and  development 
of  her  diildren  marks  accurately  the  value 
in  which  the  child  is  held.  Until  recently 
there  was  little  room  in  our  churches  for 

28 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

the  children.  Church  architecture  luade  no 
provision  for  them.  In  the  children's  de- 
partments of  our  public  libraries  there  are 
training-schools  for  children,  and  neither  a 
librarian  nor  an  architect  would  dream  of 
constructing  a  new  building  without  mak- 
ing provision  for  the  children.  There  are 
tombs,  but  no  cradles  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
If  a  church  is  to  be  a  mausoleum,  you  may 
leave  the  cradles  out,  not  otherwise.  This 
no-room  difficulty  confronted  the  parents  of 
our  children's  best  Friend. 

Instead  of  an  attitude  of  indifference, 
Christ  would  have  his  church  give  the  child 
the  largest  place  in  its  thought  and  care. 
This  should  apply  not  only  to  the  religious 
education  of  the  child,  but  to  the  plan  of 
church  buildings,  their  equipment,  and  or- 
der of  services.  The  story  is  told  of  Fran- 
cis Xavier  that  on  a  certain  occasion,  when 
worn  out  with  his  many  labors,  he  flung  him- 
self down  to  rest,  and  said  to  his  servant :  "I 
must  sleep ;  if  I  do  not  I  shall  die.  Whoever 
comes  do  not  awake  me;  tell  them  I  am 
asleep."    The  servant  watching  the  door  of 

29 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

the  missionary's  tent  soon  saw  the  pale  face 
of  Xavier,  and  heard  him  say:  "I  made  a 
mistake.  If  a  little  child  comes,  awaken 
me." 

Of  all  places  where  the  church  ought  never 
to  sleep,  but  be  awake  to  her  duty,  it  is  in 
her  relationship  to  the  child.  Gladstone, 
England's  greatest  premier  and  statesman, 
once  made  the  statement :  "The  relationship 
of  the  church  to  the  youth  of  Great  Britain 
is  a  matter  of  greater  importance  than  all 
the  combined  problems  of  the  British  Em- 
pire." Ex-President  Roosevelt  likewise 
said :  "If  you  are  going  to  do  anything  per- 
manent for  the  average  man,  you  must 
begin  before  he  is  a  man.  The  chance  of 
success  lies  in  working  with  the  boy  and  not 
with  the  man."  No  greater  and  more  vital 
truth  has  ever  been  announced  from  two 
continents  by  two  of  the  world's  greatest 
master-men  than  the  identical  truth  in  their 
respective  statements.  The  problem  of  the 
child  is  by  far  the  most  important  problem 
with  which  the  cliurch  and  state  have  to 
deal;  because  the  child  is  the  citizen  and 
Christian  of  to-morrow. 

30 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

Tlie  child,  therefore,  is  not  an  object  to  be 
despised,  but  honored  and  respected.  To 
the  church  of  to-day  our  Lord  is  saying: 
"Take  heed  that  ye  do  not  undervalue  the 
children."  Many  churches  need  to  learn  this 
lesson.  Some  pastors  and  evangelists  take 
great  pride  in  giving  their  converts  the  dis- 
tinction of  being  "heads  of  families,"  or 
"mostly  adults."  It  is  a  great  work,  indeed, 
to  lead  a  man  of  mature  years  to  Christ,  and 
it  may  be  because  of  the  difficulty  and  rare- 
ness of  the  occurrence  that  some  men  take 
pride  in  thus  characterizing  their  converts. 
The  truth  is,  however,  that  but  one  infer- 
ence can  be  put  upon  such  a  report — the 
pastor  thinks  lightly  of  the  value  of  chil- 
dren, and  would  consider  the  reception  into 
the  membership  of  his  church  of  children 
a  thing  of  insignificant  importance. 

How  pathetically  often  does  the  eye  light 
on  this  paragraph  in  a  religious  paper:  "A 
gracious  ingathering;  one  hundred  acces- 
sions, mostly  adults."  How  seldom,  if  ever, 
does  the  eye  light  on  such  a  paragraph  as 
this,  "A  gracious  ingathering;  one  hundred 

31 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

accessions,  mostly  little  children."  Why 
not?  "As  a  pastor,"  says  Bishop  William 
A.  Qimyle,  "I  definitely  believe  that  the  most 
fruitful  work  a  people  can  do  is  to  give  heed 
to  the  children,  to  brinj^  them  into  the 
church,  to  tutor  them  in  the  church,  to  put 
their  childish  feet  on  the  highway  to  the 
heavenly  mountain;  and  in  heaven  they  will 
rise  up  and  call  him  blesse<l." 

The  note  of  triumph  belongs  to  the  an- 
nouncement, if  it  should  ever  appear,  "One 
hundred  accessions,  all  of  them  children 
and  youth" ;  all  of  them  consecrating  the 
freshness  and  vigor  of  their  best  years  to 
Christ;  all  of  them  giving  not  the  fag-end 
of  worn  out  lives  to  Christ,  but  the  strength 
and  beauty  of  their  youth,  as  well  as  the  ma- 
turity of  their  manhood  and  womanhood, 
and  the  ripe  mellowness  of  their  old  age. 
The  sere  and  the  yellow  leaf  is  not  so  val- 
uable a  gift  as  the  bud  and  the  blossom,  the 
flower  and  the  fruit. 

V. 

In  the  fifth  statement  a  guard  of  start- 
ling penalty  is  thrown  about  childhood.  '^But 

32 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

whoso  shall  caiise  one  of  these  little  ones 
that  believe  on  me  to  stumble,  it  is  profit- 
able for  him  that  a  great  millstone  should 
be  hanged  about  his  nech,  and  that  he  should, 
be  sunk  in  the  depth  of  the  sea.''  ( Matt.  18 : 
C. )  The  manner  of  death  alluded  to  appears 
to  have  been  unknown  to  the  Jews ;  but  Plu- 
tarcli  mentions  this  punishment  as  being 
common  in  Greece  and  Eome.  It  was  re- 
garded as  the  most  swift  and  terrible  pun- 
ishment for  crime. 

How  great  must  be  the  sin  of  obstructing 
the  child's  way  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven! 
The  Greek  verb  translated  "offend"  in  the 
Old  Version  and  "cause  to  stumble"  in  the 
American  Revision,  originally  meant  "the 
stick  in  a  trap  on  which  the  bait  is  placed, 
and  which  springs  up  and  shuts  the  trap  at 
the  touch  of  any  animal."  Hence,  Jesus  did 
not  mean  simply  to  "vex"  or  "wound  the 
feelings"  of  the  child, — this  of  itself  is  a  mat- 
ter well  worthy  of  regard  by  every  Chris- 
tian,— -but,  rather,  "tempting  or  leading 
him  into  evil,"  by  neglect,  by  bad  example, 
by  all  that  tends  to  repress  the  enthusiasm 

33 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

of  chiklliood  for  Christ,  or  by  whatever 
tempts  them  into  the  snares  of  Satan,  bad 
habits,  vice,  and  drink.  The  word  means  to 
mislead,  to  injure  in  any  serious  respect, 
and  especially  in  their  relations  as  believ- 
ers on  Christ.  At  all  cost,  children  must  be 
encouraged  in  their  religions  inclinations; 
they  must  be  aided  and  not  hindered  on 
their  way  to  Christ. 

The  neglected  child  is  the  millstone 
about  the  neck  of  modern  society.  It  is  the 
weight  upon  the  wheels  that  impedes  the 
progress  of  our  Lord's  kingdom  in  the  earth. 
Is  it  any  wonder  that  the  Master  uttered  so 
fearful  condemnation  on  the  obstruction- 
ists? The  great  task  is  to  keep  the  road 
clear.  Stumbling  means  lost  time  and  im- 
paired efficiency.  It  must  be  clear  to  all  that 
our  Lord's  purpose  in  these  utterances  is  to 
help  the  church  to  see  that  the  sure  and 
speedy  method  of  Christianizing  the  world 
is  to  capture  life  at  its  fountainhead,  and 
direct  it  unobstructed  along  proper  and  le- 
gitimate channels. 

It  is  the  first  duty  of  the  church  to  protect 
her  heritage  of  youth,  and  to  champion  ev- 

34 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

ery  interest  of  the  child.  The  age  is  calling 
for  the  conservation  of  the  child  in  the  realm 
of  tlie  physical  life.  The  church  should  en- 
courage every  philanthropic  organization 
that  has  for  its  purpose  the  physical  better- 
ment of  the  child.  The  "cry  of  the  chil- 
dren," because  of  poverty,  work,  cruelty, 
homelessness,  disease,  ought  to  be  heard  by 
the  Christian  church  with  a  sympathetic 
heart,  with  a  hand  ready  to  help  the  fresh- 
air  work,  the  play-ground  work,  the  social- 
settlement  work,  the  orphan's  home,  the  So- 
ciety for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Chil- 
dren, and  the  lawmaker  who  seeks  to  make 
laws  for  happier  childhood.  With  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  Divine  resources,  and  how  to 
bring  them  to  bear  upon  her  tasks,  the 
church  ought  to  pray  for  the  child  in  his 
physical  need,  saying  "Amen"  to  that  beau- 
tiful petition  of  Professor  Kauschenbusch : 
"O  thou  Great  Father  of  the  weak,  lay  thy 
hand  tenderly  on  all  the  little  children,  and 
on  each,  and  bless  them.  Be  good  to  all  chil- 
dren who  long  in  vain  for  human  love,  or 
for  flowers  and  water  and  the  sweet  breath 

35 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

of  nature,  and  bless  with  a  seven-fold  bless- 
ing the  young  lives  whose  slender  shoulders 
are  already  bowed  beneath  the  yoke  of  toil, 
and  whose  glad  growth  is  being  stunted  for- 
ever. Grant  to  all  employers  of  labor  stout 
hearts  to  refuse  enrichment  at  such  a  price. 
Grant  to  all  the  citizens  and  officers  of  the 
state  which  now  permit  this  wrong  the  grace 
of  holy  anger.  Help  us  to  realize  that  every 
child  of  our  nation  is  in  very  truth  our 
child,  a  member  of  our  great  family.  By  the 
holy  child  that  nestled  in  Mary's  bosom,  by 
the  memory  of  our  own  childhood,  its  joys 
and  sorrows,  by  the  sacred  possibilities  that 
slumber  in  every  child,  we  beseech  thee  to 
keep  us  from  killing  the  sweetness  of  young 
life  by  the  greed  of  gain." 

The  conservation  of  the  child  in  the  realm 
of  his  religious  life  is  an  age-compelling 
need.  The  church  must  protect  the  child 
from  the  foes  that  seek  to  destroy  his  pure 
life. 

Queen  Victoria  bad  visited  one  of  the 
great  provincial  cities  of  England  to  per- 
form an  important  public  function.    A  large 

36 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

clioir  composed  of  three  or  four  thousand 
bo3's  and  g:irls  had  been  organized  to  sing  a 
song  of  welcome.  The  next  morning,  when 
the  Queen  got  back  to  the  palace,  she  at  once 
sent  a  message  to  the  mayor  of  the  city 
which  she  had  visited.  It  had  no  reference 
to  the  civic  formalities,  but  came  straight 
from  the  great  mother  heart  of  Victoria. 
This  was  the  message,  "The  Queen  wishes 
to  know,  Did  the  children  all  get  home 
safely?"  Are  the  children  safe?  No  more 
important  or  momentous  question  can  be 
asked. 

The  period  of  adolescence  is  the  time  of  all 
times  in  the  life  of  the  developing  human 
being,  when  he  is  most  susceptible  to  relig- 
ious impressions,  and  responds  most  read- 
ily to  the  appeal  of  Christ.  He  is  just  com- 
ing to  a  sense  of  his  own  individuality.  He 
feels  within  him  the  awakening  of  strange 
powers  and  of  vague  deep  longings.  He 
yearns  after  the  ideal,  and  Christ,  presented 
to  him  in  the  right  way,  iDrecisely  meets  and 
satisfies  his  inward  longings.  It  is  an  op- 
portunity which,  if  allowed  to  pass  unim- 
proved, never  returns. 
37 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Carefully  collected  statistics  show  that 
about  seven-eighths  of  all  the  people  iu  the 
world,  who  profess  to  be  Christians,  entered 
upon  the  Christian  life,  or  made  the  Cliris- 
tian  profession  under  the  age  of  seventeen. 
Professor  Starbuck  found  the  average  age 
of  conversion  of  fifty-one  men  to  be  fifteen 
and  seven-tenths  years,  and  of  eighty-six 
women,  thirteen  and  eiglit-tenths  years.  Ac- 
cording to  Doctor  Luther  Gulick,  reports 
from  five  hundred  and  twelve  officers  of  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association  in  the 
United  States  and  British  jirovinces  show 
that  the  average  age  when  they  were  first 
deeply  affected  by  religious  influence  was 
thirteen  and  seven-tenths.  In  his  book  en- 
titled "The  Spiritual  Life,"  Professor 
George  Adam  Coe  presents  a  chart  in  which 
he  shows  that  decisions  for  Christ  may  be 
expected  in  large  numbers  between  the  ages 
of  eleven  and  seventeen.  Above  that  age  the 
number  rapidly  decreased,  until  those  who 
begin  tlie  Christian  life  beyond  the  age  of 
thirty,  represent  an  almost  insignificant 
fraction.     "This  chart,"  says  Doctor  John 

38 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

T,  McFarland,  "is  one  of  the  most  important 
things  that  within  fifty  years  has  been 
thrown  down  on  the  table  of  the  church  for 
its  study."  It  clearly  outlines  the  zone  of 
greatest  productiveness  in  the  spiritual  life 
of  man. 

The  church  must  be  prompt  in  her  minis- 
try to  the  child.  A  policy  of  neglect  is  un- 
pardonable and  tremendously  expensive. 
Dr.  J.  Douglas  Adams  well  says :  "Better  a 
wire  fence  at  the  edge  of  a  precipice,  than 
a  magnificent  hospital  at  tlie  bottom  of  it." 
Let  us  be  at  the  wire-fence  building,  and 
never  rest  until  it  is  done.  Let  us  not  wait 
until  with  sad  faces  and  broken  hearts  we 
have  to  play  the  part  of  nurses,  to  minister 
to  the  bruised  bodies  and  souls  of  those 
who  were  once  our  boys  and  girls. 

When  the  problem  of  properly  dealing 
with  young  life  during  its  early  stages  of 
development  shall  have  been  solved,  the 
church  will  enter  upon  her  brightest  era 
since  the  day  of  Pentecost.  The  position  of 
supreme  strategic  importance  in  the  holy 
war  will  then  have  been  won. 
39 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

lu  tlie  statement  of  the  Master  we  are 
now  eonsideriuij:,  child  faith  is  recognized — 
"Whoso  shall  cause  one  of  these  little  ones 
that  helicvc  on  me  to  stumble."  These  nine 
utterances  apply  primarily  to  the  little 
child  who  was  the  text  and  object  lesson  in 
the  discourse.  There  was  a  tradition  in  the 
early  church  that  this  child  was  Ignatius, 
af terAvard  saint  and  martyr. 

Childhood  is  preeminently  the  period  of 
faith;  not  a  faith  to  be  discounted,  as  is 
often  done  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  it  is 
child  faith,  but  a  faith  the  truest,  the  sim- 
plest, and  the  most  effectual  ever  known  to 
any  period  of  man's  life.  After  we  have 
gone  through  with  our  long  drawn  out  theo- 
ries of  the  doctrines,  when  we  come  back  to 
faith,  we  come  back  to  where  we  were  as 
children.  The  great  doctrine  of  the  atone- 
ment must  be  taken  by  simple  faith.  It  is 
at  this  point  iliat  the  child  has  a  tremendous 
spiritual  advantage  over  the  man.  The  man 
looks  for  theories,  the  child  hears  a  message, 
the  man  argues,  the  child  enquires.  lie  takes 
the  story  for  precisely  what  it  is — good  news 

40 


The  Gospel  of  CMldhood 

about  God.    So  we  must  receive  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  as  a  little  child. 

When  we  hear  our  children  offering  their 
prayers  at  night,  there  is  often  with  us  a 
longing  that  they  may  keep  their  faith  as 
fresh  and  dewy  when  the  years  bring  them 
to  the  strength  and  glory  of  young  manhood 
and  womanhood,  even  when  the  shadows 
lengthen  and  they  approach  the  sunset  gates 
where  the  evening  of  time  and  morning  of 
eternity  strangely  and  beautifully  meet. 
There  is  more  than  this  longing;  there  is 
often  the  confidence  that  God  will  pay  par- 
ticular heed  to  the  prayer  of  the  little  ones. 
An  old  school  reader  gives  the  lesson  of 
child  faith  well :  The  passengers  on  the  ship 
were  affrighted;  the  captain  gave  up  hope, 
and  drunk  with  fear  staggered  down  the 
stairway. 

"But  his  little  daughter  whispered. 
As  she  took  her  father's  hand, 
Is  not  God  upon  the  ocean, 
Just  the  same  as  on  the  land?" 
Awhile  ago,   a  little  daughter  of  eight 
summers,  when  a  terrific  storm  was  raging, 
4X 


Tlw  Child  and  the  Church 

nestled  into  her  motlier's  arms,  and  placing 
her  bands  about  ber  neck,  said:  "Mamma, 
don't  be  afraid,  God  will  not  let  ns  get  bnrt 
if  we  have  been  good.  He  loves  ns  and  will 
take  care  of  us ;  because  be  says  he  will." 

In  a  southern  hospital,  a  little  girl  was 
about  to  undergo  a  critical  operation.  When 
she  mounted  the  table  to  be  etherized,  the 
doctor  said :  "Mary,  before  we  can  make  you 
well  we  must  put  you  to  sleep."  "Oh,  then, 
if  you  are  going  to  put  me  to  sleep,"  she  re- 
plied sweetly,  "I  must  say  my  prayer  first." 
And  getting  down  on  her  knees  and  folding 
her  hands,  she  repeated  the  prayer  taught 
her  by  her  mother : 

"Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep, 
I  pray  the  Lord  my  soul  to  keep ; 
If  I  should  die  before  I  wake, 
I  pray  the  Lord  my  soul  to  take. 
And  this  I  ask  for  Jesus'  sake.  Amen." 
There  were   some  moist  eyes,   for  deep 
chords  were  touched,  and  the  surgeon  said 
afterwards,  "I  prayed  that  night  for  the  first 
time  in  thirty  years." 

It  is  upon  the  intruder  of  the  sacred 
heavenly   precincts   of   childhood    faith   to 

42 


The  Oospel  of  Childhood 

destroy  or  misguide  it,  that  the  swift  and 
terrible  punishment  is  attached — "It  were 
better  for  him  that  a  millstone  were  hanged 
abont  his  neck,  and  tliat  he  should  be  sunk  in 
the  depth  of  the  sea."  No  more  striking 
presentation  of  the  inestimable  value  of 
child  faith,  and  the  importance  of  its  pres- 
ervation could  be  given  than  that  of  our 
Lord  throwing  this  guard  of  startling  pen- 
alty around  it. 

VI. 

When  the  disciples,  through  blindness, 
were  objecting  to  Jesus  receiving  little  chil- 
dren, he  said,  '^Suffer  the  little  children  to 
come  unto  me/'  ( Matt.  19 :  14 ;  Luke  18 :  5 ; 
Mark  10 :  14. )  The  term  means,  permit,  al- 
low them  to  come.  The  imiiulse  is  within 
them,  and  within  the  hearts  of  truly  pious 
parents,  and  the  demand  of  Jesus  is  that  it 
shall  not  be  obstructed.  Of  some  Jesus  said, 
"Compel  them  to  come,"  but  of  the  children 
he  said,  "Suffer  them  to  come."  It  was  as 
if  he  had  said,  "Simply  open  the  way;  they 
will  come  if  they  are  permitted  to  come." 


43 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

The  presence  of  Jesus  must  have  been  dis- 
tinctly attractive  and  impressive.  Children 
responded  at  once  to  his  winsomeness.  Tliis 
is  the  highest  test.  Fresh  from  the  hand 
of  God,  they  are  drawn  to  the  pure  and 
good;  they  are  repelled  by  selfishness  and 
badness;  they  draw  out  the  best;  they  are 
drawn  only  b}'  the  true  and  beautiful  and 
good.  This  is  an  infallible  test.  This  told 
most  of  the  winsomeness  of  Jesus.  Tlie  lit- 
tle child,  being  a  reflection  of  the  divine 
nature,  is  at  home  with  Jesus,  and  readily 
responds  to  his  call,  and  reaches  out  his  lit- 
tle arms  to  receive  his  embrace. 

VII. 

The  seventh  statement  of  our  Lord  lias  an 
official  force  and  flavor,  and  may  be  re- 
garded as  primarily  a  command  to  the 
church, '' Fori) id  them  not."  That  the  church 
is,  in  a  large  measure,  violating  this  com- 
mand, greatly  to  its  own  loss,  and  greatly  .'  i 
the  injury  of  the  children,  scarcely  needs 
to  be  argued. 

"By  .a  policy  of  neglect,  by  the  almost  ex- 
clusive expenditure  of  its  energies  upon 
44 


The  Gospel  of  CMldhood 

efforts  at  adnlt  conversion  and  culture,  by 
omitting  from  the  architecture  of  its  houses 
of  worship,  and  in  its  sermons  all  considera- 
tion of  a  place  for  tlie  children,  by  a  failure 
to  provide  any  well-adapted  system  of  in- 
struction, until  very  recent  years,  and  only 
partially  so  now,  and  above  all  by  a,  failure 
to  use  the  family,  in  accord  with  the  divine 
intent,  for  the  training  of  children  in  the 
nurture  of  a  spiritual  life,  the  church  is, 
like  the  disciples  in  the  incident,  forbidding 
the  children  to  come  to  Jesus ;  and  the  Christ 
of  to-day,  like  the  Christ  in  that  incident,  is 
rebuking  his  remiss  and  short-sighted  fol- 
lowers for  such  an  attitude." 

VIII. 

The  eighth  statement  of  our  Lord  comes 
directly  to  the  heart  of  the  subject,  ''^For  of 
such  is  tlie  Jdngdom  of  heaven/^  Thus,  when 
the  great  teacher  speaks  definitely  of  the  re- 
lation of  the  children  to  the  kingdom  of  God, 
he  uses  the  genitive  of  possession  and  says 
"of  such."  Doctor  Henr^^  Van  Dyke  says, 
"It  is  as  if  Jesus  had  said,  'The  kingdom  of 
heaven  belongs  to  such.' "     It  is  the  chil- 

45 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

dren's  inheritance,  their  possession,  their 
kingdom. 

Infant  baptism  does  not  represent  a  cure, 
nor  does  it  represent  a  prophecy,  it  rather 
represents  a  fact,  a  very  blessed  fact;  all 
children  are  members  of  the  kingdom  of 
God,  and,  therefore,  are  graciously  entitled 
to  baptism  and  all  the  rights  and  privileges 
of  the  church.  Jesus,  the  supreme  theolo- 
gian "who  understood  to  its  bitter  roots  the 
nature  of  man's  original  sin,  and  its  effects 
on  human  nature  in  the  generations  which 
followed,  stood  in  the  midst  of  the  centu- 
ries and,  stooping  down,  lifted  up  a  little 
child  and  held  him  up  before  the  eyes  of  all 
the  centuries  that  should  follow  after,  and 
declared,  *0f  such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven.' 
Back  of  the  authority  of  this  divine  Teacher 
we  cannot  go,  and  should  not  care  to  go." 

Standing  in  the  presence  of  the  child,  be- 
fore the  warping  of  a  selfish  sinful  atmos- 
phere has  hurt  him,  we  feel  the  glow  of  an- 
other world,  and  the  touch  of  baby  fingers 
calls  forth  all  that  is  tenderest  and  purest 
and  noblest  in  human  nature.  Who  can  look 

46 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

into  tlie  clear,  innocent  eyes  of  the  little 
child  and  not  feel  the  truth  of  that  line  of 
Wordsworth,  "Heaven  lies  around  us  in  our 
infancy,"  and  the  truth  of  the  immortal 
words  of  a  greater  than  Wordsworth,  "Of 
such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 

There  is  no  place  for  the  little  child  on 
earth  but  the  kingdom  of  God;  there  is  no 
place  for  the  child  when  he  leaves  this 
world  but  heaven.  There  are  no  heathen 
children  in  the  world.  They  may  become 
heathen,  but  there  is  no  heathen  child  any- 
where in  the  world.  "If  Christ  should  come 
once  again  among  men  and  walk  our 
streets,"  says  Dr.  J.  T.  McFarland,  "he 
would  take  into  his  arms  a  child  of  our  fair- 
faced  Anglo-Saxon  race  and  declare  of  him, 
'Of  such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven' ;  and  if 
he  walked  yonder  in  Tokyo,  he  would  take 
into  his  arms,  in  like  manner,  the  brown- 
faced  child  of  Japan,  or  in  Peking,  the  yel- 
low-faced child  of  China,  in  Lucknow  the 
dark-hued  child  of  India,  or  in  darkest  Af- 
rica some  child  of  ebony  skin,  and  of  each 
alike  he  would  declare,  'Of  such  is  the  king- 
dom of  heaven.'  " 

47 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

One-third  of  the  human  race  is  saved  with- 
out any  effort  on  the  part  of  the  church.  The 
countless  chihlren  in  heathen  and  pap^an 
lands  are  Clirist's  redeemed  ones,  and  from 
the  laps  of  the  mothers  in  all  these  lands,  in 
all  the  centuries,  the  little  ones  have  been 
going  up  to  heaven.  Jesus  claims  them  all 
— "of  such  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven,"  Some 
mathematician  has  calculated  that  since  the 
creation  of  man  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  thousand  millions  of  people  have  died; 
of  this  number  more  than  forty  thousand 
millions  were  taken  away  in  childhood.  The 
picture  gives  new  charm  and  attractiveness 
to  the  heavenly  city.  •  With  the  addition  of 
every  little  child,  heaven  has  been  made 
fairer  and  sweeter. 

We  do  not  deny  that  there  are  evil  tend- 
encies inherited  by  the  child,  but  they  are 
tendencies  which  have  not  become  evil. 
There  are  no  unchristian  children  in  our 
churches,  in  our  homes,  in  our  land.  They 
may  become  unchristian,  but  no  one  of  them 
now  is  such.  It  is  the  task  and  obligation 
of  the  church  to  preserve  them  and  keep 

48 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

them  as  Christian,  claiming  them  for  Christ 
and  his  kingdom.  This  does  not  assume  to 
exclude  the  essential  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
and  divine  grace  in  the  process.  As  in  the 
development  of  the  flowers  the  work  of  the 
gardener  is  supplemented  by  the  rain,  dew, 
and  sunshine,  who  will  dare  to  say  that  when 
the  church's  part  is  faithfully  performed  in 
the  religious  development  of  the  child,  at 
the  proper  times,  God  will  not  press  a  thou- 
sand kisses  of  renewal  upon  the  little  heart 
and  life. 

It  is  a  fearful  tiling  to  deal  with  young 
life  in  an  unnatural  way.  Efforts  to  fasten 
on  children  the  moods  and  experiences  that 
belong  to  hardened  adults  is  a  great  and  aw- 
ful mistake.  The  evangelistic  method  that 
is  best  for  the  hardened  sinner,  is  the  worst 
possible  for  a  little  child.  The  child  must  be 
treated  spiritually  as  a  child,  and  not  as  a 
grown  up.  Such  normal  methods  of  evan- 
gelism must  be  pursued  as  shall  hold  the 
child  in  the  church,  bringing  him  through 
such  methods  into  a  rich  personal  conscious- 
ness of  Christ  as  his  Savior,  and  then  train- 

49 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

ing  him  in  that  Christlikeness  of  life  and 
service  that  will  send  him  out,  like  his  Lord, 
to  scatter  a  divine  contagion  on  mankind. 

On  the  flyleaf  of  his  excellent  book  enti- 
tled, "The  Crisis  of  the  Christ,"  Doctor 
G.  Campbell  Morgan  has  the  following  beau- 
tiful dedicatory  words,  "To  my  father  and 
mother,  who,  forty  years  ago,  gave  me  to 
Christ,  and  who,  never  doubting  the  accept- 
ance by  him  of  their  child,  did  from  infancy 
and  through  youth  train  me  as  his;  from 
whom  I  received  my  first  knowledge  of  him, 
so  that  when  tlie  necessity  came  for  my  per- 
sonal choosing,  so  did  I  recognize  the  claims 
of  his  love,  that,  without  revulsion,  and 
hardly  knowing  when,  I  yielded  to  Mm  my 
allegiance  and  my  love,  devoting  spirit,  soul, 
and  body  to  his  sweet  will  and  glad  service." 

This  dedication  clearly  and  beautifully 
sets  forth  the  philosophy  of  the  ideal  Chris- 
tian nurture  and  discipleship.  When  the 
children  are  taught  from  infancy  that,  hav- 
ing been  redeemed  by  the  sacrifice  of  the 
cross,  they  belong  to  the  kingdom  of  God 
and  to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  witli  the  dawn 

50 


The  Gospel  of  Gliildliood 

and  increase  of  intelligence,  they  will  come 
to  see  that  it  is  their  obligation  and  privi- 
lege to  recognize  his  claims  to  their  trust, 
love,  and  obedience,  and  to  become  partak- 
ers in  him  of  the  priceless  blessings  of  dis- 
cipleship.  Just  when  the  personal  choice  of 
Christ  as  Savior  and  Lord  takes  place,  nei- 
ther parents  or  children  may  be  able  to  tell. 
Normal  religious  training  will  not  permit  a 
day,  in  the  development  of  a  life,  when  the 
individual  does  not  know  that  he  is  in  the 
kingdom  of  God,  and  a  member  of  his 
church. 

In  the  light  of  that  sublime  utterance  of 
the  Great  Teacher,  "Of  such  is  the  kingdom 
of  heaven,"  it  is  monstrous  heresy,  a  crime 
against  childhood,  and  a  source  of  incalcu- 
lable loss  to  the  church  to  regard  the  little 
child  as  corrupt  and  depraved,  and  that  chil- 
dren should  be  expected  to  serve  the  devil 
awhile  before  they  begin  to  serve  the  Lord ; 
that  they  should  be  expected  to  pass  through 
an  experience  of  spiritual  indifference  and 
ignorance,  and  undergo  a  more  or  less  vio- 
lent process  of  conversion  before  becoming 
51 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

happy,  loyal  disciples  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ. 

This  heresy,  which,  stran,c;e  to  say,  has  its 
advocates,  is  au  offense  ai>ainst  childhood 
akin  to  that  named  in  the  fifth  statement  of 
his  discourse,  where  Christ  holds  up  sin 
against  childhood  as  a  capital  crime  in  Iiis 
government.  God  never  looks  us  more  di- 
rectly in  the  face  than  when  he  looks  at  us 
through  the  eyes  of  a  little  child,  and  we 
never  sin  more  directl}^  against  God's  holi- 
ness than  when  we  sin  against  the  child. 

The  doctrine  is  utterly  out  of  harmony 
with  the  teachings  of  the  JMaster  concerning 
the  religious  status  of  the  child,  and  the  re- 
lation of  the  church  to  the  children.  It  re- 
fuses to  co-operate  with  God  in  working  out 
his  great  purposes  in  the  future  of  the  hu- 
man race,  for  through  the  children  the  di- 
vine ideals  are  to  be  realized.  The  child 
holds  the  future,  and  the  only  way  to  save 
the  future  is  to  save  the  child.  We  cannot 
save  the  child  by  conceding  him  to  the  ene- 
my in  his  youthliood,  and  then  attempt  by 
special  methods  to  win  him  back  to  God  in 
his  manhood, 

52 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

Our  methods  of  approach  to  the  child's 
heart  and  mind  must  be  in  harmony  with  the 
well-established  laws  and  principles  that 
govern  the  child's  growth.  Religions  devel- 
opment must  be  made  not  a  matter  of  mir- 
acle and  magic,  but  a  part  of  the  child's  nor- 
mal development.  One  of  the  fine  sayings 
of  Bishop  Edwin  H.  Hughes  is,  "The 
Church  of  Christ  will  be  wise  when  it  takes 
every  representative  of  the  generation  at 
the  rating  which  our  Lord  gives  him,  con- 
firms his  native  faith,  tells  him  that  now  he 
must  in  his  childish  ways  do  the  will  of  the 
blessed  Master,  and  leads  him  on  and  up  un- 
til the  impulsive  outgoings  of  the  young 
heart  are  changed  into  deliberate  convic- 
tions and  fixed  purposes  to  belong  to  Christ 
forever  and  ever." 

The  United  States  marine  service  has  two 
methods  of  saving  life:  the  life-saving  crew 
and  the  lighthouse.  The  former  waits  for 
the  wreck,  and  then  rushes  out  to  rescue  the 
perishing  and  care  for  the  dying ;  the  latter 
stands  on  some  promontory  reaching  out 
into  the  sea,  and  throws  its  beams  far  out 
53 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

upon  the  open  sea  to  enable  the  ship  to  steer- 
safely  into  the  harbor.  This  method  is  to 
avoid  the  wreck.  Let  us  continue  even  more 
vigorously  evangelistic  work  among  the 
adults  who  have  missed  the  better  way,  and 
have  been  wrecked  by  sin;  but,  at  the  same 
time,  let  us  put  added  and  tremendous  em- 
phasis upon  the  lighthouse  method  of  sav- 
ing the  world. 

Revivals  of  religion  have  marked  great 
epochs  in  the  history  of  the  church.  The 
results  are  not  surprising  when  we  remem- 
ber that  the  power  which  moves  in  every 
true  revival  is  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit ; 
that  the  instrument  is  the  Word  of  God 
made  alive  and  imperative  by  the  Spirit's 
touch;  and  that  the  channel  or  agency  of 
this  power  is  the  church  of  Christ.  Charac- 
ters which  have  been  wrecked  by  sin  are 
renewed  and  recast;  homes  tliat  have  been 
desolated  become  houses  of  prayer  and 
praise;  the  life  of  the  church  is  deepened, 
its  sympathies  broadened,  and  its  faith 
strengthened.  But  in  productiveness  the  • 
revival  is  by  no  means  equal  to  the  more 
54 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

normal  and  quieter  operations  of  the  law  of 
growth  as  manifested  in  the  development  of 
the  kingdom  from  within.  "It  is  probable," 
says  Bishop  James  Atkins,  "that  the  great- 
est revival  period  shall  come  only  when  the 
membership  of  the  church  shall  consist  pre- 
dominantly of  a  generation  reared  from  in- 
fancy in  the  nurture  of  the  Lord.  Then  tlie 
Word  of  God,  which  is  the  instrument  of  the 
Spirit  for  such  ends,  will  be  in  the  heart,  un- 
derstood in  that  strange,  deep  way  which  be- 
comes possible  only  by  an  assimilation  in 
the  life  of  a  believer.  Such  a  church  will  al- 
so have  a  power  of  witnessing  which  will  be 
rationally  irresistible,  and  it  will,  therefore, 
serve  better  as  a  channel  through  which  the 
Spirit  may  reach  the  unsaved." 

The  church  cannot  afford  to  forget  that 
her  supreme  mission  is  to  give  light  and  to 
save  life.  But  the  hope  of  the  kingdom  lies 
in  those  whom  Dr.  J.  W.  Dawson  has  felici- 
tously named,  "The  sons  of  the  tabernacle" ; 
those  who  never  depart  from  their  allegiance 
to  the  Highest.  It  is  a  real  achievement  to 
recover  the  derelict  and  bring  them  to  har- 

55 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

bor  and  anchorage.  It  is  a  greater  achieve- 
ment to  bring  the  life  just  launched  without 
spot  or  blemish  of  personal  evil  and  place  it 
at  the  King's  service. 

Whenever  the  church  becomes  wise  enough 
to  work  with  God,  she  will  adjust  herself  to 
the  children  with  a  program  of  religious 
training  that  will  keep  them  within  the  fold, 
and  insure  their  growth  to  a  manhood  un- 
marred  and  unweakened  by  those  hard  con- 
ditions which  are  universally  present  in  ir- 
religious adults. 

IX. 

The  last  and  ninth  statement  of  Jesus  con- 
cerning children  in  this  connection  is  a  reve- 
lation of  thrilling  interest,  ^'hi  heaven  their 
angels  do  always  behold  the  face  of  my 
Father.''  ( Matt.  18 :  10. )  This  is  a  charm- 
ing, a  climacteric  picture  of  heaven's  esti- 
mate of  the  value  of  childhood. 

Children  are  under  the  care  of  the  highest 
order  of  angels,  of  those  that  stand  contin- 
ually in  the  presence  of  the  Father,  and  have 

most  direct  and  immediate  access  to  him.  If 
66 


The  Gospel  of  Childhood 

Christ  so  cares  for  the  children,  if  the  high- 
est angels  guard  them  with  loving  care,  then 
the  church  should  give  its  most  loving  at- 
tention, its  best  gifts,  its  most  earnest  en- 
deavor in  their  behalf. 

Jesus  to-day,  standing  before  all  parents 
and  before  the  whole  church,  stretching  out 
his  hands  over  the  children  of  the  whole 
world,  is  saying,  "It  is  not  the  will  of  your 
Father  which  is  in  heaven,  that  one  of  these 
little  ones  should  perish";  and  he  is  charg- 
ing parents  and  the  whole  church -with  the 
great  responsibility  in  seeing  to  it  that 
through  no  neglect  in  care  and  instruction 
any  one  of  them  should  perish.  The  primary 
and  most  pressing  obligation  of  the  church 
is  to  the  children.  When  the  church  of 
Christ  assumes  this  relation  and  attitude  to- 
wards the  child  and  adapts  her  method  to 
the  need  and  possibility  of  the  kingdom  of 
childhood,  she  will  sweep  into  the  coming 
years  with  the  swing  of  a  conquering  army. 

The  church  is  here  in  the  world  to  do 
what  Jesus  would  do.  By  teaching  and  ex- 
ample he  commissions  his  church  to  en- 
57 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

throne  childhood,  to  respect  it,  to  love  it,  to 
help  it,  to  preserve  it,  and  keep  it  in  the  at- 
mosphere of  Rudyard  Kipling's  beautiful 
prayer : 

Father  in  heaven,  who  lovest  all, 
Oh,  help  thy  children  when  they  call, 
That  they  may  build  from  age  to  age 
An  undefiled  heritage. 

Teach  us  to  rule  ourselves,  alway 
Controlled  and  cleanly,  night  and  day. 
That  we  may  bring,  if  need  arise. 
No  maimed  or  worthless  sacrifice. 

Teach  us  to  look  in  all  our  ends 
On  thee  for  judge,  and  not  our  friends. 
That  we  with  thee  may  walk  uu cowed 
By  fear  or  favor  of  the  crowd. 

Teach  us  the  strength  that  cannot  seek 
By  deed  or  thought  to  hurt  the  weak ; 
That  under  thee  we  may  possess 
Man's  strength  to  comfort  man's  dis- 
tress. 

Teach  us  delight  in  simple  things. 
And  mirth  that  has  no  bitter  springs. 
Forgiveness  free  of  evil  done 
And  love  to  all  men  'neath  the  sun 

58 


®t)e  CJ)urcf)  in  tfje  i|ome 


II. 

The  Church  in  the  Home 

IN  writing  of  a  certain  family  in  the  city 
of  Corinth,  the  apostle  makes  reference 
to  "the  church  which  was  in  their 
house."  The  object,  doubtless,  was  to  de- 
scribe a  home  where  religion  is  taught,  and 
piety  cultivated.  The  church  was  origin- 
ally a  domestic  institution.  In  all  the  cen- 
turies the  family  has  been  the  chief  seat  and 
principal  bulwark  of  true  religion. 

The  family  is  the  greatest  of  the  world's 
institutions.  As  the  seed  is  greater  than 
the  plant,  the  fountain  than  the  stream,  so 
the  family  is  greater  than  the  church  or  the 
state.  It  is  the  organic  unit  of  society,  and 
from  it  must  flow  the  weal  or  woe  of  the 
race.  The  character  of  the  homes  of  a  na- 
tion will  determine  its  future.  The  home 
life  is  the  lining  of  the  world's  life.  If  it  is 
kept  pure  and  wholesome,  all  life  will  be 
made  purer  and  the  world  better. 

61 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Other  influences  in  the  larger  circles  of 
society  may  alter  the  outward  appearance 
of  men  and  women,  or  determine  their  paths 
for  later  years,  or  even  their  destiny  for  eter- 
nity ;  yet  it  is  in  the  family  that  the  nature 
and  bent  is  given  the  child,  which  distin- 
guislies  the  man  or  woman  from  other  men 
or  women,  and  plays  the  most  important 
part  in  shaping  the  character  of  manhood 
or  womanhood.  Under  any  system  of  so- 
ciety, socialistic  or  individualistic,  the  fam- 
ily holds  the  future  in  its  bosom.  The  proph- 
ecy of  the  seer,  the  vision  of  the  poet,  and 
the  dream  of  the  humanist  will  be  realized. 


as  the  family  with  each  passing  century  be- 
comes what  it  ought  to  be  and  can  be. 

Homes  are  the  real  schools  in  which  men 
and  w^omen  are  trained,  and  fathers  and 
mothers  are  the  real  teachers  in  life.  We 
refer  with  pride  to  our  Sunday  schools, 
academies,  colleges,  and  churches;  but  the 
home,  after  all,  is  the  greatest  traiuing- 
scliool  in  the  land.  The  unit  of  all  Jewish 
and  Christian  legislation  as  enacted  in  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments,  Avas  the  home.  If 

62 


TliG  Church  in  the  Home 

"the  groves  were  God's  first  temples,  par- 
ents were  his  first  priests."  In  the  begin- 
ning God  placed  the  first  responsibility  for 
the  right  training  and  religious  instruction 
of  tlie  race  upon  the  parents,  and  the  intro- 
duction of  the  school,  whether  it  be  the  state 
school  or  the  church  school,  has  never  abro- 
gated that  responsibility. 

Those  who  view  with  some  alarm  the  lapse 
of  authority  in  the  church  to-day,  as  com- 
pared with  former  years,  may  not  be  sur- 
prised when  students  of  social  science,  and 
observers  of  modern  social  customs,  tell 
them  that  there  is  an  equal  lapse  of  parental 
authority  in  the  family ;  and  we  may  not  be 
wrong  in  assuming  that  the  condition  of  the 
church  is  perhaps  due  to  this  condition  in 
the  family.  Another  fact,  and  of  no  less  im- 
portance, is  that  whereas  in  former  years 
we  witnessed  frequent  conversions  in  the 
family  as  a  result  of  parental  solicitude  for 
the  spiritual  development  of  the  child,  to- 
day such  phenomena  are  rare  indeed. 

Since  home  is  the  place  where  children  are 
to  grow  into  physical  vigor  and  health,  and 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

to  be  tiaiued  in  all  that  shall  make  them 
true  and  noble  men  and  women,  it  should  be 
the  first  and  greatest  concern  of  i^arents  to 
know  what  influences  will  best  fashion  such 
character. 

The  form  of  the  structure  to  become  the 
dwelling-place  of  the  family  should  not  be 
disregarded  in  view  of  its  influences  upon 
the  family  life,  because  it  enters  as  a  fac- 
tor into  the  life  and  character  of  the  chil- 
dren. Its  appearance,  roominess,  decora- 
tion, and  location  will  all  have  much  to  do 
witli  the  health,  disposition,  and  morals  of 
the  family.  If  the  family  can  afford  but  two 
rooms  to  call  their  home,  they  should  put 
into  them  just  as  much  educating  power  as 
possible.  Children  are  fond  of  pictures,  and 
pictures  in  a  house,  if  they  be  pure  and  good, 
have  a  wondrous  influence  in  refining  their 
lives.  In  these  days  of  cheap  art,  when 
prints  and  engravings  can  be  purchased  at 
such  small  cost,  there  is  scarcely  any  one 
who  may  not  have  on  the  walls  of  liis  home 
some  bright  bits  of  beauty,  which  will  prove 
an  inspiration  to  his  children.  A  home 
64 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

clean,  tasteful,  y/lietlier  large  or  small,  with 
simple  adornments  and  pleasant  surround- 
ings, is  an  influence  of  incalculable  value 
in  tlie  education  of  children. 

Greater  and  more  important  than  tlie 
dwelling  and  its  adornments  are  the  unseen, 
3'et  potent  forces  of  the  family  life,  which, 
after  all,  constitute  the  real  home.  The  ideal 
home  is  the  one  Avith  "the  church  in  thv^ 
house."  Tliere  is  the  atmosphere  of  the 
true  family  spirit  where  love  reigns  su- 
preme, and  worship  is  maintained.  These 
two  principles  when  established  make  home, 
though  it  be  a  tent  or  a  cottage,  and  provide 
conditions  for  the  growth  of  character  into 
Christ-like  beauty. 

In  our  homes  we  are  growing  immortal 
lives;  they  must,  therefore,  be  made  true 
spiritual  conservatories.  Children  are  of 
more  worth  than  all  the  flowers.  It  is  said 
that  Joseph  and  Mar}^  marveled  at  the 
things  which  were  spoken  of  the  child  Jesus 
when  they  carried  him  into  the  temple. 
There  was  here  the  mystery  of  a  life  just 
begun,  whose  unfolding  should  be  for  the 

65 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

help  and  glory  of  mankind.  As  the  beauti- 
ful mother  rocked  the  precious  babe  in  her 
arms,  as  she  sang  snatches  of  the  sweet  song 
of  Israel,  as  she  watched  him  sleeping,  there 
must  have  come  day  by  day  the  sense  of  how 
great  and  how  wonderful  was  the  duty 
which  God  had  given  her.  When  a  mother 
carries  to  its  little  cot  her  sleeping  child, 
and  before  leaving  it  smooths  back  the  hair 
from  its  forehead,  and  puts  her  kiss  upon  its 
lips,  and  breathes  over  it  a  mother's  prayer, 
let  her  remember  that  a  dignity  surrounds 
the  work  of  caring  for  that  child  that  angels 
do  not  possess. 

The  little  child  must  be  trained  to  be  a 
worshiper  of  God.  This  can  be  done  most 
successfully  by  first  teaching  him  that  Gofl 
is  worthy  of  worship.  It  is  well  to  begin 
with  the  tliought  that  tlie  child  is  to  return 
to  God  some  gift  for  all  the  gifts  which  God 
has  given  to  him.  Teach  him  that  there  is 
one  way  in  which  God  may  receive  a  gift — 
the  gift  of  human  adoration  and  praise  for 
the  Father's  love. 


66 


The  Church  in  the  He  ,ie 

Sometimes  children  have  false  notions  of 
God.  This  is  not  natural,  but  the  result  of 
false  teaching.  They  are  made  to  think  of 
him  as  a  policeman,  who  is  constantly 
watching  around  the  corner  to  catch  them  if 
they  have  done  wrong.  It  is  the  duty  of  par- 
ents to  remove  all  false  ideas  of  God  from 
the  child's  mind,  and  to  teach  him  that  God 
is  a  loving  Father.  When  old  Hector,  clad 
in  armor,  went  to  say  good-by  to  his  child, 
the  child  was  afraid  and  ran  away  from 
him.  Hector  knew  the  cause  and  casting 
aside  his  armor,  stretched  out  his  arms, 
and  the  child,  smiling,  came  running  and 
])Ounded  to  his  bosom.  Children  love  birds, 
flowers,  trees,  rivers,  fields,  and  hills.  Let 
them  know  that  God  is  the  giver  of  all  these 
Ijeautiful  things  which  they  enjoy.  Mrs. 
Browning  has  described  in  the  following 
verses  the  thoughts  of  God  that  should  be 
found  in  the  heart  of  the  child : 

"They  say  that  God  lives  very  high ; 
But  if  you  look  above  the  pines 
You  cannot  see  our  God;  and  why? 

67 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

"And  if  joii  dig  down  in  the  mines 

You  never  see  him  in  the  gold, 

Though  from  him  all  that's  glory  shines. 

"God  is  so  good,  he  "wears  a  fold 

Of  heaven  and  earth  across  his  face — 

Like  secrets  kept,  for  love,  untold. 

"But  still  I  feel  that  his  embrace 

Slides  down  by  thrills,  through  all  things 

made, 
Through  sight  and  sound  of  every  place. 

"As  if  my  tender  mother  laid 

On  my  shut  lips  her  kisses'  pressure, 

Ilalf-waking  me  at  night,  and  said, 

'Who   kissed  you  through  the  dark,   dear 

guesser?' " 

Life's  highest  refinements  cannot  come 
with  any  education,  however  elaborate,  un- 
less there  i&  this  first  lesson  in  the  reverence 
toAvard  God,  and  unless  the  child  is  a  wor- 
shiper, practicing  the  presence  of  God.  Al- 
most daily  we  come  in  contact  with  some 
simple  life,  shorn  of  many  advantages,  that 
lias  the  grace  and  attractiveness  of  perfect 

68 


The  CJiurch  in  the  Home 

poise,  confident  before  all,  yet  modest  be- 
fore the  humblest,  never  saying  or  doing 
what  is  jarring  or  out  of  harmony,  but  al- 
ways the  light  of  all  v/ho  pass  by.  A  mys- 
tery, you  say?  No,  it  is  a  life  that  has 
learned  the  primary  lesson  of  all  cultivation 
— the  reverence  for  God  learned  in  worship. 
Moreover,  in  the  worship  of  God  the  child 
learns  the  lesson  of  love,  it  is  the  summit  of 
life.  "The  perfection  of  love  is  not  reached 
till  the  love  goes  beyond  the  love  for  imper- 
fect creatures  and  becomes  love  for  God. 
Love  for  God  may  be  expressed  chiefly,  and 
perfectly  in  worship.  It  is  the  gift  wJiich 
love  can  bring,  in  its  unique  way,  to  God. 
If  you  wish  to  be  assured  that  when  you  are 
old  and  querulous  your  child  will  show  you 
the  patience  and  reverence  which  are  due 
you ;  if  you  wish  to  be  sure  that  he  is  to  have 
in  him  the  essential  spirit  of  loving  kind- 
ness for  all  about  him,  both  high  and  low, 
tlien  you  must  teach  him  the  love  w^hich  cul- 
minates in  the  love  given  to  God  in  wor- 
ship." 


69 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

The  home  is  the  most  ancient  of  the 
^yo^ld's  institutions,  and  religion  has  always 
constituted  its  real  heart.  When  there  were 
only  two  beings  on  the  earth,  and  no  organ- 
ized church,  prayer  and  praise  were  heard. 
Milton  represents  Adam  and  Eve  as  address- 
ing their  morning  thoughts  in  concert  to 
God: 

"Soon  as  they  came  to  open  siglit 

Of  dayspring  and  the  sun,     .... 

Lowly  they  bowed  adoring,  and  began 

Their  orisons,  each  morning  duly  paid 

In  various  styles." 

When  the  whole  church  of  God  was  in 
the  ark  of  the  flood,  familj^  worship  was  the 
only  devotion.  The  custom  was  clearly  es- 
tablished in  the  days  of  Abraham.  Isaac's 
altar  at  Beersheba  and  Jacob's  altar  at 
Bethel  were  family  monuments.  Moses 
gave  definite  instruction  concerning  wor- 
ship in  the  home.  Christ  was  often  found  in 
praj^er  with  his  family,  the  apostles. 

If  religion  is  maintained  in  the  home 
there  must  be  family  worship,  where  all  as- 
semble to  listen  devoutly  to  God's  word  and 

70 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

bow  reverently  in  supijlication  at  God's  feet. 
The  family  altar  should  be  established  and 
dedicated  before  any  other  consideration, 
because  it  is  the  most  powerful  agency  in 
making  the  home  sacred,  and  endearing  it 
forever  in  the  hearts  of  those  who,  in  after 
years,  may  look  back  to  the  days  of  child- 
hood spent  in  an  atmosphere  permeated 
with  its  precious  incense. 

The  influence  of  godly  example,  the  mem- 
ories of  tlie  home  altar,  the  abiding  power  of 
holy  teachings  and  the  grace  of  God  descend- 
ing perpetually  upon  the  young  life  in  an- 
swer to  believing  prayer,  give  it  such  an  in- 
spiration and  impulse  toward  all  that  is  no- 
ble and  heavenly  that  it  goes  out  to  scatter 
the  divine  contagion,  and  to  be  a  blessing  to 
others.  When  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  nearing  the 
end  of  her  earth  life,  she  sang  a  stanza  of  a 
favorite  hymn,  then  pronounced  a  mother's 
blessing  upon  her  son,  and  committed  the 
family  to  God's  care  and  keeping.  Then  fol- 
lowed a  few  moments  of  silence.  The  father 
was  sitting  with  bowed  head  at  the  bedside. 
The  son  had  risen  from  his  knees,  turned 

71 


The  child  and  the  Church 

liis  face  to  llie  wall,  and  was  sobbing  as  if 
his  lioart  would  break.  Presently  the  father 
said,  "Mother,  Abraham  will  never  be  able 
to  sing  as  good  as  you  can."  "No,  may  be 
not,"  she  replied,  "but  he  may  cause  others 
to  sing.  All  his  life  we  have  named  his 
name  in  our  family  prayers,  and  I  have  tried 
to  be  such  a  mother  to  him  that  when  he  goes 
out  from  home  he  may  be  ready  for  whatever 
mission  God  may  have  for  him,  and  by  his 
work  make  others  sing." 

Authors  liave  alwaj^s  done  their  best  work 
in  the  hours  when  the  mood  has  been  retro- 
spective, and  the  memories  of  home  and 
childhood  have  stood  forth  in  soft  clear 
light,  and  father  and  mother  and  their 
sweet  influences  have  lent  warmth  and  rich- 
ness to  the  reason  and  imagination.  In  seek- 
ing out  the  most  popular  poems  of  Burns, 
we  pass  by  all  those  in  which  the  poet  ex- 
poses hj^pocrisy,  or  laughs  at  human  frailty, 
or  smites  man's  sin.  His  highest  flights  of 
genius  were  in  those  hours  when  he  sang  of 
home  and  love  and  friendship.  Asked  to  name 
the  greatest  works  of  Dickens,  Victor  Hugo, 

72 


The  Church  in  the  Some 

Tennyson,  Lowell,  Browning  and  Longfel- 
iovr — those  that  men  count  immortal — it  is 
ahvays  safe  to  answer,  "They  are  those  that 
are  revelatory,  and  tell  the  story  of  the  joys 
and  sorrows,  and  liopes  and  loves  of  child- 
hood's home."  Take  the  Christian  home  out 
of  literature  and  music,  and  it  would  be 
like  taking  warmth  out  of  the  sunbeam, 
sweetness  out  of  the  rose,  ripeness  from  the 
peach,  the  soul  from  the  body,  and  God  from 
the  sky. 

There  is  nothing  in  all  literature  more 
impressively  beautiful  than  the  picture 
Burns  presents  of  the  "Cotter's  Saturday 
Night."  We  crown  him  the  supreme  master 
of  sweet  song  in  those  hours  when  he  goes 
Iiomeward  with  the  cotter  on  a  Saturday 
niglit,  and  draws  nigh  to  some  sweet  cot- 
tage, nestling  under  green  leaves  in  some 
lovely  valley,  sees  the  greensward  in  front, 
the  bonnie  brier  bush  looming  hard  beside 
tlie  door,  the  wealth  of  ivy  creeping  o'er  the 
v/indows ;  sees  the  inner  walls  white  washed 
to  look  like  driven  snow;  the  Bible  lying 
open  on  the  stand,  the  mother  sitting  by  the 

73 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

lieartli,  and  kneels  again  with  these  humble 
folk  to  commit  the  days  and  the  years  to  the 
mercy  of  the  all-forgiving,  all-guiding,  all- 
loving  God. 

A  worthy  appreciation  of  the  home  would 
give  it  imperial  rank  among  the  agencies 
that  contribute  to  the  true  progress  of  civi- 
lization. Its  supremacy  appears  in  the  fact 
tliat  it  sustains  divine  relations  toward  so- 
ciety and  civilization.  Blackstone's  Horn- 
book of  English  Law  defines  the  parent  as 
in  lo  dei — "in  place  of  God."  When  the  phi- 
losophers affirm  that  every  sage  and  seer  and 
statesman  has  had  a  great  mother  or  father, 
they  affirm  that  the  home  is  the  foundation 
of  power  and  the  mainspring  of  progress. 
When  Wordsworth  said,  "My  parents  made 
vows  for  me,"  he  meant  that  there  was  in  his 
nature  a  certain  secret  and  mysterious  pre- 
disposition toward  the  loA'e  of  nature  and 
poetr^^  that  had  in  thein  the  zeal  and  sanc- 
tion of  the  divine  call.  Luther  had  his  love 
of  liberty,  Richter  his  love  of  writing,  and 
Goetlie  liis  taste  for  literature,  as  a  mother's 
gift;  Augustine,  Otterbein,  and  the  Wesleys 

74 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

were  swept  forward  upon  their  great  career 
as  ministers  by  tlie  tides  that  flowed  down 
from  their  mothers'  lives.  Many  of  the  men 
who  have  led,  and  will  continue  to  lead  the 
Avorld,  as  the  pillar  of  cloud  in  the  olden 
time  led  the  hosts  of  God  through  the  des- 
ert, were  called  to  the  ministry  before  their 
eyes  opened  to  the  light  of  day,  and  were 
consecrated  and  trained  at  the  family  altar. 
If  the  depleted  ranks  in  the  Christian  minis- 
try are  to  be  filled,  it  will  be  when  religion 
is  re-established  in  the  home,  when  family 
altars  are  built  or  rebuilt,  and  a  flame  from 
heaven  rekindles  their  quenched  fires.  The 
prophets  of  God  have  no  more  urgent  duty,^ 
in  these  days,  than  to  summon  parents  to 
this  great  and  important  service. 

Family  worship  should  be  observed  at 
least  once  a  day,  in  the  presence  of  the  en- 
tire family.  "Every  day  will  I  bless  thee." 
( Psalm  145 :  2. )  Two  services  daily  would 
be  preferable.  "It  is  a  good  thing  .  .  . 
to  show  forth  thy  loving  kindness  in  the 
morning,  and  thy  faithfulness  every  night." 
( Psalm  9:1,  2. )     The  primitive  Christians 

75 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

began  and  closed  the  day  with  prayer.  Na- 
ture would  seem  to  direct  us  to  these  sea- 
sons. Each  day  is  a,  little  life,  which  should 
be  opened  and  closed  with  prayer. 

Family  worship,  as  a  rule,  should  be  con- 
ducted by  the  father  as  patriarch  of  the 
home.  Some  times  rotation,  according  to 
age  and  gifts  of  members  of  the  family,  is 
found  to  be  profitable.  The  service  should 
be  made  pleasant  and  attractiye,  so  that  it 
will  be  anticipated  with  eagerness  on  the 
part  of  each  member  of  the  family.  It  should 
be  enlivened  by  jjleasing  variety.  Instead 
of  being  stately  and  formal,  it  should  be 
made  simple  and  familiar. 

The  Scripture  lesson  should  be  carefully 
selected — a  parable,  a  simple  narrative  to 
the  extent  of  ten  or  twelve  verses,  or  a  Psalm 
may  be  read.  Some  families  find  it  profit- 
able to  read  the  selection  assigned  for  tlie 
day  in  the  Home  Readings  in  the  Sunday- 
school  lesson  helps.  For  variety,  tlie  lesson 
may  be  read  by  the  leader,  or  by  verses  in 
turn,  or  it  may  be  read  responsively.  An 
occasional  explanatory  remark,  an  incident 
76 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

that  illustrates  the  thought  vill  brighten 
the  worship  and  enhance  its  interest  for 
children. 

Singing  should  form  part  of  the  service. 
Some  one  suggests  that  it  will  be  found  prof- 
itable on  Sabbath  evenings  to  hold  a  little 
family  service  of  song,  reading  a  verse  or 
two  of  Scripture,  and  then  singing  a  song 
appropriate  to  the  sentiments  of  the  serv- 
ices of  the  day.  When  Christ  had  instructed 
his  family,  the  twelve  apostles,  lie  sang  a 
h^'mn  with  them.  There  is  no  argument  for 
sacred  music  in  the  church  that  does  not 
apply  with  equal  force  to  the  family. 

If  there  is  a  musical  instrument  in  tlie 
home,  its  use  will  add  much  to  the  interest 
of  worship.  After  the  reading  of  the  Scrip- 
ture lesson,  and  before  the  prayer,  let  the 
mother,  or  one  of  the  children  play  the  in- 
strument, and  all  unite  in  singing  a  sacred 
song.  The  children  will  especially  be  inter- 
ested in  this  part  of  the  service,  and  its  im- 
pressions Yviil  abide  with  them  througli  life 
as  a  tender  memory.  Of  music  in  the  home 
Alaric  A.  Watts  beautifully  writes: 

77 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

M3'sterions  keeper  of  the  key 
That  opens  the  gates  of  memory, 
Oft  in  thy  wildest,  simplest  strain 
We  live  o'er  years  of  bliss  again ! 

The  sun-bright  hopes  of  early  youth, 
Love,  in  its  first  deep  hour  of  truth — 
And  dreams  of  life's  delightful  morn 
Are  on  thy  seraph-pinions  borne ! 

To  the  enthusiast's  heart  thy  tone 
Breathes  of  the  lost  and  lovel}^  one. 
And  calls  back  moments,  brief  as  dear. 
When  last  'twas  wafted  on  his  ear. 

The  gloom  of  sadness  thou  canst  suit 
The  chords  of  thy  delicious  lute ; 
For  every  heart  thou  hast  a  tone, 
Canst  make  its  pulses  all  tliine  own ! 

The  prayer  should  be  brief,  free  from  all 
stereotyped  phrases  and  couched  in  simple 
language  that  all  can  understand.  It  should 
express  real  need  in  a  few  words  earnestly 
and  truthfully  presented.  Outside  interests 
should  not  be  omitted  entirely,  but  it  should 
be  a  prayer  chiefly  for  the  little  group  that 

78 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

kneels  about  the  altar,  sometimes  taking  up 
the  members  by  name,  and  carrying  to  the 
Lord  the  particular  needs  of  each.  It  is 
often  v,'ell  to  close  the  prayer  with  the  entire 
family  uniting  in  the  Lord's  Prayer. 

The  influence  and  blessing  of  the  family 
altar  is  beyond  estimate.  Bowing  in  prayer 
together  in  the  morning  strengthens  all  the 
household  for  life's  duties.  The  children 
go  out  under  sheltering  wings,  having  been 
committed  to  the  Father's  loving  care.  These 
are  perilous  days  in  which  we  are  living. 
Every  home  needs  the  refuge  of  religion.  It 
affords  home  security  and  happiness,  re- 
moves family  friction,  and  causes  all  the 
complicated  wheels  of  the  home  machinery 
to  move  on  noiselessly  and  smoothly.  It 
causes  the  members  to  reciprocate  each  oth- 
er's affections,  hushes  the  voices  of  recrimi- 
nation, and  exerts  a  softening  and  harmo- 
nizing influence  over  the  heart.  There  is  no 
lovelier  sight  than  a  family  at  prayer.  So 
sacred  should  this  duty  be  that  no  press  of 
labor,  no  interference  of  circumstances 
should  ever  cause  it  to  be  unperformed.    To 

79 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

begin  the  day  without  family  worship,  may 
be  to  the  household  something  like  leaving 
open  tlie  gates  of  a  besieged  city,  with  those 
within  open  to  the  attacks  of  the  enemy. 

The  church  of  to-day  may  well  lament  an 
evident  decline  of  family  worship  and  relig- 
ious education  in  the  home.  The  place  of 
the  home  in  religious  education  is  central 
and  fundamental.  If  religion  dies  out  of 
the  family  it  cannot  elsewhere  be  main- 
tained, A  society  in  which  there  is  no  relig- 
ious family  will  never  be  made  religious  by 
Sunday  schools,  revival  meetings,  conven- 
tions, and  churches.  A  meeting-house  relig- 
ion is  a  very  poor  substitute  for  dwelling- 
house  religion.  Says  Doctor  Littlelield: 
"The  great  task  before  us  now  is  to  make  the 
family  what  Jesus  made  it,  the  symbol  of 
the  kingdom  of  God,  and  the  basis  for  in- 
struction upon  the  character  of  God  and  the 
nature  of  the  religious  life.  Supremely,  the 
family  must  give  expression  to  the  religious 
life  through  positive  acts  of  devotion  and 
through  church  attendance.  Family  worship 
and  Bible  reading  must  be  re-established," 
80 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

The  tendency  of  our  busy  age  to  ignore  or 
sliift  parental  responsibility  for  children's 
moral  and  religions  education  is  perilous. 
No  business  interest  can  be  of  such  imx^or- 
tance  as  to  justify  a  man's  evasion  of  the  sa- 
cred duties  which  he  owes  to  his  family. 
What  will  it  profit  a  father  if  he  gain  the 
whole  world  and  lose  his  own  cliildren? 

Bays  Dr.  J.  Wilbur  Chapman:  "I  was 
standing  in  Tiffany's  great  store  in  New 
Yorlv;,  and  I  heard  a  salesman  say  to  a  lady 
who  had  asked  him  about  some  pearls,  'Mad- 
am, this  pearl  is  worth  seventeen  thousand 
dollars.'  I  was  interested  at  once  and  said, 
'Will  you  kindly  let  me  see  the  pearl  that  is 
wortlL  seventeen  thousand  dollars?'  The 
salesman  put  it  on  a  piece  of  black  cloth,  and  . 
I  studied  it  carefully.  I  said,  'I  suppose  Tif- 
fany's stock  is  very  valuable.'  And,  as  I 
looked  around  that  beautiful  store,  I  im- 
agined them  bringing  all  their  stock  up  to 
my  house  and  saying,  'We  want  you  to  take 
care  of  this  to-niglit.'  What  do  you  think  I 
^^hould  do?  I  sliould  go  as  quickly  as  possi- 
ble to  the  telephone  and  call  up  the  chief  of 

81 


Tlic  Child  and  the  Church 

police  and  say:  'I  have  all  Tiffany's  stock  in 
my  house,  and  it  is  too  great  a  responsibility. 
Will  yon  send  some  of  your  most  trusted  of- 
ficers to  help  me?'  You  would  do  the  same 
wouldn't  you?  But  I  have  a  little  boy  in 
my  home,  and  for  him  I  ain  responsible.  I 
have  had  him  for  nine  years,  and  some  of 
you  may  have  just  such  another  little  boy. 
Turning  to  this  old  Book  I  read  this  word : 
'What  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he  gain  the 
whole  world  and  lose  his  own  soul?  or,  wbat 
shall  he  give  in  exchange  for  his  soul?'  It 
is  as  if  he  had  all  the  diamonds  and  rubies 
and  pearls  in  the  world,  and  held  them  in 
one  hand,  and  just  put  a  little  boy  in  the 
other,  and  the  boy  would  be  worth  more  than 
all  the  jewels.  If  you  would  tremble  be- 
cause you  had  seventeen  million  dollars' 
worth  of  jewels  in  your  house  one  night,  how 
can  3^ou  go  up  to  your  Father  and  the  lad 
be  not  with  you?" 

Family  worship  should  be  supplemented 
by  the  incorporation  of  an  intelligent  edu- 
cational purpose  in  its  program.  In  some 
way  there  must  be  a  real  strengthening  of 

82 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

the  sense  of  family  responsibility  for  the 
religious  education  of  the  child.  It  is  for 
the  church  to  strengthen  the  home  at  this 
point  by  inspiring  and  training  parents  to 
take  up  the  work  they  have  neglected,  and  by 
giving  them  definite,  systematic  help  in  main- 
taining family  worship,  and  in  the  religious 
training  of  their  children.  A  simple  man- 
ual, outlining  these  duties,  would  be  of  great 
value  to  every  home.  This  should  be  sup- 
plemented with  a  few  books  such  as:  "A 
Study  of  Child  Nature,"  by  Elizabeth  Har- 
rison ;  "Beckonings  From  Little  Hands,"  by 
Patterson  DuBois;  "Hints  on  Child  Train- 
ing," by  H.  Clay  Trumbull;  "The  Girl  In 
Her  Teens,"  by  Margaret  Slattery;  "The 
Boy  Problem,"  by  William  Byron  Forbush ; 
and  "Secrets  of  Happy  Home  Life,"  by  J.  R. 
Miller.  A  number  of  others  might  be  men- 
tioned equally  as  good,  and  none  of  them 
expensive. 

The  purpose  of  the  home  is  to  make  possi- 
ble a  normal  religious  experience  by  provid- 
ing tlie  fitting  and  favorable  environment. 
In  the  fulfillment  of  the  divine  command, 
83 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

"Ye  must  be  born  again,"  the  parent  is  a  co- 
worker with  God.  The  new  birth  of  the 
cliild,  whether  immediate  or  gradual  as  the 
budding  flower,  is  but  the  beginning,  and 
needs  for  further  development  the  inspira- 
tion and  guidance  of  helpful  surroundings. 
Physical  growth  and  mental  culture  are  de- 
pendent in  a  large  degree  upon  environment, 
and  the  spiritual  life  is  none  the  less  so.  The 
message  of  the  church  to  the_  home  is  that 
human  life  need  never  become  a  ruin  and  a 
desolation. 

If  parents  give  time  and  study  to  the  con- 
struction of  conservatories  for  the  growing 
of  flow^ers  which  fade  in  a  day,  they  should 
willingly  pay  any  price  for  the  creation  of 
a  home  atmosphere  that  will  make  it  a  true 
conservatory  for  the  growing  of  souls  that 
live  forever. 

The  church  in  the  home  is  a  blessing  in 
prosperity  and  an  angel  of  solace  in  the  day 
of  adversity.  "Tiie  equipage  and  livery  and 
plate  may  vanish ;  the  valued  paintings  and 
gorgeous  furniture  may  fly  under  the  ham- 
mer; fortunes  may  be  scattered,  and  the 

84 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

VQvy  mansion  be  forsaken,  yet  in  a  cottage 
or  a  garret,  within  bare,  cold  walls  shunned 
by  the  parasites  of  other  days,  the  Christian 
family  may  rejoice  that  the  daily  worship  of 
God  still  remains,  and,  though  with  tearful 
eyes,  they  can  still  from  the  bottom  of  their 
hearts  give  thanks." 

Sorrow  will  inevitably  come  to  every 
home.  We  cannot  build  a  mansion  so  costly 
that  death  cannot  enter  and  lay  his  hand 
upon  the  most  precious  jewel.  At  such  a 
time  the  splendors  of  architecture,  the  beau- 
ties of  art,  the  luxuries  of  costly  furnishings 
or  adornments  cannot  soothe  the  aching 
heart  or  answer  the  soul's  longings.  Re- 
ligion furnishes  solid  comfort.  Standing 
by  the  open  grave,  and  listening  to  the  im- 
mortal words,  "I  am  the  resurrection  and 
the  life;  he  that  believeth  in  me,  though  he 
were  dead,  yet  shall  he  live ;  and  whosoever 
liveth  and  believeth  in  me  shall  never  die," 
the  birds  that  had  hushed  their  songs  in  the 
darkness  of  the  valley  tune  again  their 
voices,  and  the  flowers  that  had  closed  their 
petals  open  again  in  beauty,  and  we  go  away 

85 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

in  the  liope  that  soon  we  shall  meet  our 
loved  one  in  the  home  of  "many  mansions." 

The  influence  of  "the  church  in  the  home" 
is  great,  silent,  irresistible,  and  permanent. 
Like  the  calm,  deep  stream,  it  moves  on  in 
silent,  but  overwhelming  power.  The  earth 
is  not  sufficiently  wide,  nor  the  heavens  suf- 
ficiently high  to  allow  a  child  to  drift  from 
the  influence  and  memory  of  such  a  home.  It 
is  the  choicest  emblem  of  heaven. 

Overtaken  by  misfortune,  poverty,  and 
sickness,  John  Howard  Payne  went  stagger- 
ing down  tlie  streets  of  Paris  toward  the  gar- 
ret where  he  slept.  Darkness  had  fallen. 
The  sleet  drove  against  his  face,  and  the  cold 
pierced  his  thin  cloak.  Suddenly  a  door 
opened,  and  the  light  streamed  forth  upon 
the  street,  the  glow  and  warmth  perfuming 
all  the  air.  Into  the  arms  of  the  man  who 
stood  upon  the  threshold,  happy  children 
leaped,  while  the  beaming  mother  stretched 
forth  her  babe.  In  a  moment  the  door  closed, 
the  light  faded  into  darkness,  and  the  youth 
stood  again  in  the  sleet  and  cold,  little 
dreaming  that  what  he  was  learning  in  suf- 

86 


The  Church  in  the  Home 

fering  lie  was  to  teacli  in  song.  Finding 
his  way  to  the  garret  where  he  slept,  his 
shivering  form  bends  over  the  table,  his 
head  resting  upon  his  arms,  while  his  lonely 
heart  goes  bounding  across  the  seas,  and 
memory  is  busy  gathering  up  the  scenes  of 
childhood's  home.  Then  weeping,  he  sobs 
once  and  again,  "There  is  no  place  like 
home." 

The  old  homestead  rises  before  his  vision, 
he  crosses  once  again  its  threshold,  sees  fa- 
miliar forms,  hears  familiar  voices.  Pres- 
ently, the  picture  changes,  and  his  home  of 
a  while  ago,  embalmed  with  sweetest  memo- 
ries is  transferred  to  the  future,  and  the  vis- 
ion of  meeting  in  heaven  those  whom  he  had 
loved  and  lost  ravished  his  soul.  Then  light- 
ing a  candle,  and  brushing  away  the  tears, 
with  leaping  heart  and  shining  face,  he  saw 
the  "vision  splendid,"  and  sang  of  home  and 
hopes  and  heaven. 


87 


public  OTorgfjip 


Ill 

The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

PRACTICAL  recognition  of  the  rela- 
tive place  of  the  Sunday  school  and 
public  worship  in  the  process  of  re- 
ligious education,  is  classed  as  one  of  the 
most  urgent  needs  in  church  work. 

It  ought  to  be  the  natural  thing  for  par- 
ents to  be  with  their  children  in  Sunday 
school,  and  children  with  their  parents  in 
the  public  worship.  Unfortunately,  such  is 
not  the  case.  It  is  estimated  that  a  majority 
of  the  adult  attendance  upon  public  wor- 
ship are  not  in  the  Sunday  school,  and  that 
eighty  per  cent,  of  the  Sunday  school  chil- 
dren are  not  in  the  public  services  of  the 
church.  This  abnormal  condition  is  the 
cause  of  many  f>roblems  now  upon  us.  A 
distinguished  New  York  pastor  in  discussing 
the  situation  says:  "In  our  modern  society 
children  of  professing  Christians  seldom  go 
to  church  during  their  best  habit-forming 

91 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

years,  wbile,  conversely,  Christian  parents 
frequently  neglect  the  Sunday  school  during 
their  best  service-giving  years.  In  this  man- 
ner parents  and  children  of  Christian  homes 
are  serving  God  along  separated  parallel 
lines,  which,  as  we  know,  never  meet.  The 
Sunday-school  line  is  the  shorter  line,  but  it 
has  no  regular  terminus  at  the  church  door." 
Concern  in  the  matter  centers  chiefly  in 
the  absence  of  children  from  public  worship. 
In  one  of  a  series  of  articles  recently  ap- 
pearing in  the  British  Weekly  entitled,  "A 
League  of  Worshiping  Children,"  the  writer 
goes  on  to  sliow  the  decrease  of  membership 
in  some  of  the  great  churclies  of  England, 
and  offers  as  a  solution  the  bringing  of  the 
children  into  tlie  church,  and  training  them 
to  become  worshipers  in  the  church.  He 
gives  figures  to  show  that  the  attendance  of 
children  at  the  hours  of  worship  is  lamen- 
tably small.  No  question  before  the  Federal 
Council  of  Churches  commanded  more  ser- 
ious attention  than  the  religious  training  of 
children,  and  that  great  body  of  leaders 
passed  a  resolution  urging  parents  to  com- 

92 


The  Sunday  School  and  Puhlic  Worship 

pel  their  children  to  attend  public  worship. 
It  is  not  uncommon  in  these  days  for 
church  councils  to  pass  resolutions  deplor- 
ing a  growing  tendency  upon  the  part  of  the 
Sunday  school  to  drift  away  from  the  pub- 
lic services  of  the  church,  and,  further,  to  ac- 
knowledge that  these  conditions  present  the 
most  urgent,  and  at  the  same  time  one  of 
the  most  difficult  problems  the  church  has 
to  deal  with  just  now. 

While  it  is  no  doubt  true  that  some  of 
these  claims  are  greatly  exaggerated,  it  nev- 
ertheless must  be  admitted  that  the  matter 
does  present  an  urgent  and  difficult  prob- 
lem. The  reasons  assigned  for  the  absence 
of  children  at  public  worshij)  are  various. 
Some  say  that  parents  are  indifferent.  Oth- 
ers insist  that  the  blame  attaches  to  the  pas- 
tors, because  they  do  not  interest  the  chil- 
dren. Still  others  believe  that  it  is  due  to 
having  the  Sunday  school  and  the  church 
service  in  immediate  succession  as  to  time. 
While  another  class  attributes  it  to  the  fail- 
ure of  officers  and  teachers  in  the  Sunday 
school  to  impress  upon  the  children  the  priv- 
93 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

ilege  and  duty  of  attending  public  worship, 
and  to  malce  them  feel  that  they  are  wanted 
and  expected  in  the  church  service. 

With  the  rise  of  modern  pedagogy  and  the 
study  of  child  nature,  the  child  has  moved 
up  into  the  first  place  in  the  thought  of  our 
age.  Emerson  quotes  an  old  gentleman  as 
saying  that  all  his  life  had  been  spent  in  a 
most  unlucky  time  of  transitions — "When 
lie  was  a  boy  the  greatest  respect  was  paid 
to  old  age,  and  now  that  he  was  old  the 
greatest  respect  was  paid  to  children."  In 
our  churches,  this  respect  paid  to  children 
lias  been  particularly  focused  upon  the  Sun- 
day school,  which  explains  why,  in  the  popu- 
lar mind,  the  Sunday  school  is  the  child's 
church,  and  public  worship  is  held  for 
adults.  And  why  "Sunday-school  children" 
rather  than  "churcli  children"  represents 
the  ideal  with  which  the  age  contents  itself. 

The  disparagement  of  emphasis  is  marked. 
Organization  for  promoting  the  Sunday 
scJjool  is  almost  at  the  point  of  perfection — 
denominational,  township,  county,  state, 
provincial,    international,    world.      Special 

94 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

literature  is  published  in  great  abundance 
for  its  improvement;  but  there  are  as  yet 
few,  if  any  organizations  specifically  for  the 
promotion  of  the  church  service,  and  there 
are  no  publications  devoted  specially  to  this 
object.  For  this  disparagement,  however, 
the  Sunday  school  is  not  responsible. 

What  can  be  done  to  change  these  condi- 
tions and  to  strengthen  the  link  that  con- 
nects the  Sunday  school  with  public  wor- 
ship? This  is  a  question  familiar  to  every 
pastor,  officer,  and  church  worker.  The  an- 
swer to  the  question  depends  upon  the  an- 
swer of  another  lying  back  of  it,  namely.  Is 
it  desirable  that  children  should  attend  pub- 
lic worship?  Considering  this  question,  let 
us  stop  to  inquire  concerning  the  distinct 
function  or  place  of  the  Sunday  school  and 
the  public  worship  in  the  religious  educa- 
tion of  the  child,  and  in  the  development 
of  Christian  character. 

The  church  as  here  implied  is  a  local  or- 
ganized body  of  believers  in  Jesus  Christ 
whose  purpose  is  the  promotion  of  the 
kingdom  or  reign  of  Christ.  The  Sunday 
95 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

school  is  one  of  the  organized  agencies  of 
the  church  through,  or  by  means  of  which 
the  church  seeks  to  realize  its  purpose.  It 
is,  therefore,  not  an  institution  in  and  by 
itself. 

By  "public  worship"  ai'e  meant  the  pub- 
lic devotional  meetings  of  the  church  which 
are  carried  on  especially  as  occasions  of  wor- 
ship, with  the  conviction  that  worship  is  es- 
sential to  the  proper  development  of  the 
Christian  life.  Prominent  in  these  services 
are  prayer,  instruction  through  the  reading 
and  preaching  of  the  Word,  the  administra- 
tion of  the  ordinances  and  sacraments,  with 
the  purpose  of  winning  people  to  Christ,  pro- 
moting loyalty  to  him  and  to  the  church,  and 
activity  in  personal  service. 

The  Sunday-school  service  is  the  assembly 
of  this  particular  agency  of  the  church,  es- 
pecially for  the  work  of  personal  instruction 
in  the  Word  of  God.  While  it  is  devotional 
in  character,  its  method  and  end  is  analyt- 
ical and  educational,  while  that  of  the 
church  services  is  spiritual  and  devotional. 
In  other  words,  the  Sunday  school  is  prima- 

96 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

rily  for  instruction  with  an  element  of  wor- 
ship. The  public  service  is  primarily  for 
worship  with  elements  of  instruction. 

From  these  considerations  it  is  clear  that 
our  love  and  responsibility  for  children  are 
not  met  by  making  the  Sunday  school  a 
substitute  for  the  church.  Important  as  is 
the  Bible  school,  it  was  never  intended  to 
be  a  church  nor  a  substitute  for  a  church, 
and  cannot  take  the  place  of  the  church  in 
the  child's  religious  life.  The  chief  need  of 
children  is  not  instruction,  but  impressions 
that  inspire  right  impulses. 

In  some  instances,  children  axe  excused 
from  attending  public  worship  on  the 
grounds  that  they  cannot  understand  the 
sermon — the  service  is  too  lengthy,  and, 
therefore,  distasteful,  and  against  the  in- 
clinations of  the  children.  If  required  to 
attend,  they  are  likely  to  acquire  an  aver- 
sion to  the  church.  It  would  seem  quite  pos- 
sible for  the  church  to  meet  and  overcome 
logical  objections;  but  no  sane  parent  or 
teacher  would  apply  such  logic  to  the  gen- 
eral training  of  the  young.  Should  the  child 
97 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

not  be  required  to  conform  to  any  rule  of 
conduct  or  regimen  of  instruction  which 
would  not  be  in  accordance  with  his  imma- 
ture judgment,  taste,  or  disposition? 

The  theory  that  children  acquire  an  aver- 
sion to  the  church  by  being  required  to  at- 
tend public  worship  is  not  in  harmony  with 
the  facts  of  experience.  Those  who  were 
reared  under  such  requirements  do  not  in 
mature  years  think  of  it  as  having  worked  a 
hardship,  but,  rather,  as  the  years  of  life  ac- 
cumulate, the  memory  of  those  days  becomes 
more  beautiful  and  delightful,  supplemented 
by  an  increasing  sense  of  gratitude  to  par- 
ents for  such  discipline.  Moreover,  it  is  not 
a  matter  of  observation  that  children,  who 
are  trained  up  b}^  their  parents  to  go  to 
church,  are  the  people  who,  when  they  come 
to  mature  years,  constitute  the  absentee 
class  from  church  attendance  and  services. 

Furthermore,  it  is  unfair  to  children  and 
youth  in  these  days  of  unparalleled  educa- 
tional advantages  to  say  that  their  inability 
to  comprehend  the  sermon  is  sufficient 
ground  for  not  attending  public  worship. 
98 


The  Sunday  ScJiool  and  Piihlic  Worship 

Such  is  not  always  the  case.  The  mother  of 
Abraham  Lincoln  is  reported  to  have  said  to 
a  friend,  "I  get  most  out  of  a  sermon  not  by 
trying  to  follow  the  minister,  but  by  having 
Abe  go  over  it  and  explain  it  when  we  return 
home."  The  boy  was  at  that  time  about  ten 
years  of  age. 

In  the  house  of  God,  as  a  rule,  the  first 
and  deepest  religious  impressions  are  made. 
It  is  the  place  of  visions  and  vows — the  very 
gate  of  heaven.  While  only  twenty  per  cent, 
of  our  Sunda^'-school  pupils  attend  public 
worship,  it  is  estimated  that  eighty-seven 
per  cent,  of  all  additions  to  the  church  come 
from  the  twenty  per  cent,  who  do  attend. 

Children  need  the  spiritual  culture  that 
comes  only  through  the  worship  of  the  great 
congi'egation.  The  spiritual  atmosphere  of 
the  sanctuary  becomes  the  breath  of  life  to 
the  soul,  not  only  of  adults,  but  of  children 
as  well — a  holy  medium,  a  hallowed  afflatus, 
a  spiritual  ozone,  which,  though  involun- 
tarily absorbed,  vitalizes  the  higher  nature. 
''The  quiet  of  the  hour,"  says  Bishop  Vin- 
cent,   "compels    even    the    small    child    to 

99 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

quietude.  'This  is  God's  house,  I  must  be 
quiet.  This  is  God's  day,  I  must  be  reverent. 
This  is  God's  book,  I  must  hear  it.  This  is 
God's  minister,  I  must  be  attentire.'  "  Sim- 
ply to  be  present  in  such  a  place,  even  though 
the  mind  does  not  fully  comprehend  the  ut- 
terances from  the  pulpit,  is  to  be  impressed 
and. benefited  by  the  heavenly  influences. 

It  is  one  of  the  fine  sayings  of  the  late 
Charles  Cuthbert  Hall :  "The  church  and  the 
children  belong  together.  The  church  can- 
not do  without  the  children.  The  children 
cannot  do  without  the  church."  A  recent 
writer  recalls  that  a  mother  started  to  with- 
draw from  a  service  in  the  City  Temple, 
London,  with  a  prattling  child,  when  the 
pastor,  Dr.  Parker,  said :  "I  would  not  have 
you  leave  this  service  with  that  child.  We 
need  the  child  in  the  midst."  It  is  a  true 
note.  We  need  the  child  to  keep  the  child 
spirit  fresh  in  us.  There  is  need  that  our 
age  learn  the  lesson  of  reverence,  and  that 
the  atmosphere  of  our  churches  be  worship- 
ful, but  when  such  atmosphere  is  gained  by 
the  absence  of  the  child,  it  carries  with  it 

100 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

the  prophecy  of  coming  death.  "In  that  holy 
city  that  is  the  ideal  and  the  goal  of  our  en- 
deavor, one  of  the  attractions  given  is  that 
tlie  ring  of  the  child's  voice  will  be  heard  in 
the  street.  There  is  a  musical  quality  in 
such  a  strain  that  can  come  from  no  other 
source,  and  that  the  music  of  the  eternal 
sjibere  would  be  minus  but  for  that  most 
necessary  note;  and  in  our  pursuit  of  the 
ideal  the  loss  of  the  note  of  childhood  mars 
the  whole  anthem  of  worship." 

Over  against  any  so-called  psychological 
reason  that  might  be  urged  against  church 
attendance  upon  the  part  of  the  child  must 
be  placed  that  greatest  and  most  signifi- 
cant fact  of  psychology;  namely,  that  child- 
hood is  the  habit-forming  period  of  life.  One 
of  the  greatest  services  of  the  child  psychol- 
ogist is  that  he  is  putting  tremendous  em- 
phasis upon  this  fact.  It  is  a  serious  matter, 
indeed,  for  children  to  outgrow  the  Sunday 
school  and  pass  out  into  the  world  without 
any  practical  knowledge  of  the  church's  serv- 
ices, sermons,  and  sacraments,  and  without 
attendance  upon  public  worship  having  be- 

101 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

come  a  fixed  habit.  The  childless  church, 
like  the  childless  home,  will  perish  with  a 
single  generation. 

The  responsibility  of  forming  the  church- 
going  habit  rests  primarily  with  the  home. 
Family  discipline  in  these  days  is  espe- 
cially lax  in  the  matter  of  church  attendance. 
Many  parents  do  not  even  ask  their  children 
to  go  to  church,  and,  when  they  do,  they  may 
or  may  not  sit  in  the  family  pew.  Some 
group  them  in  a  children's  church  whatever 
that  may  mean.  The  home  has  very  largely 
ceased  to  be  what  it  once  Avas,  the  unifying 
sanctuary.  It  is  the  duty  of  parents  to  bring 
their  children  to  the  church.  Monstrous, 
indeed,  is  the  idea  that  religion  is  optional 
in  life  and  that  children  must  be  trained 
in  the  formation  of  all  other  habits  than  re- 
ligious habits.  Parents  have  been  delin- 
quent in  the  performance  of  their  first  and 
highest  duty  to  their  children  until  they 
have  brought  them  to  the  church,  and 
trained  them  in  forming  the  church-going 
habit,  and  have  thus  implanted  true  princi- 
ples deej)  in  their  hearts,  which  shall  rule 

102 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

the  entire  future  of  their  lives.  It  is  cruel 
to  rob  a  child  of  the  means  of  its  highest  de- 
velopment. 

The  presentation  of  the  child  Jesus  in  the 
temple,  with  its  attendant  circumstances,  in- 
cluding the  reception  the  little  babe  re- 
ceived, presents  a  picture  that  is  fascinating 
in  its  simplicity,  and  impressive  in  its  sug- 
gestiveness.  No  sooner  had  the  mother  car- 
ried her  child  into  the  temple  than  the  vener- 
able Simeon  tottered  to  her  side  and  took 
the  little  child  into  his  arms,  and  blessed 
God.  Forgetting  the  dignity  of  the  com- 
pany that  had  assembled  in  the  temple  on 
that  occasion,  let  us  think  of  the  one  phase 
of  the  beautiful  picture  that  bears  directly 
on  our  problem,  and  that  points  the  way  to 
its  solution,  namely,  a  family  sitting  to- 
gether in  God's  house,  and  a  childless  old 
r.ian  rejoicing  to  have  them  there  and  espe- 
cially happy  because  of  the  presence  of  the 
cliild.  In  other  words,  the  mother  knew  her 
responsibility  to  bring  the  child  to  church; 
and  the  aged  and  lonely  Simeon  gave  the 
child  welcome.     The  picture  presents  the 

103 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

two  important  lessons :  First,  It  is  the  duty 
of  parents  to  bring  their  cliildren  to  the 
services  of  the  church.  Second,  It  is  the 
duty  of  the  church  to  welcome  the  children 
when  they  are  brought. 

This  problem  will  be  solved  when  the 
home,  Sunday  school,  and  church  unite  in 
desire  and  purpose  to  have  it  solved.  The 
Sunday  school  must  make  the  pupils  feel 
that  it  really  wants  them  to  attend  public 
worship,  and  the  church  must  show  that 
slie  really  wants  tlie  children  in  her  services. 
And  it  may  be  assumed  that  if  the  church 
would  show  a  real  interest  in  the  matter, 
parents,  and  Sunday  school,  and  Christian 
Endeavor  would  also  add  their  voices  to 
hers. 

It  is  manifestly  a  mistake  on  the  part  of 
pastors,  and  church  officers  to  undertake  to 
remedy  these  conditions  by  publicly  parad- 
ing them  before  the  school  and  congregation. 
It  is  a  sure  way  to  defeat  the  ends  to  be  ac- 
complished. A  critical,  fault-finding  spirit 
upon  the  part  of  leaders  has  never  resulted 
in  remedying  conditions  that  were  not  ideal 

104 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

in  a  local  church.  Let  the  pastor  give  him- 
self prayerfully  to  the  study  of  the  problem 
with  a  view  to  finding  the  way  to  its  solu- 
tion. And  then  so  revise  his  program  for 
the  work  and  services  of  the  church  as  will 
make  it  easy  and  natural  for  the  problem  to 
solve  itself.  This  he  must  do  in  the  spirit  of 
faith  and  love,  and  both  the  church  and  Sun- 
day school  will  gladly  follow  in  the  move- 
ment. 

What  is  the  outlook?  This  should  be  a  day 
of  encouragement  rather  than  discourage- 
ment, because  men  are  no  longer  satisfied 
with  lamenting  conditions,  but  are  setting 
about  with  patience  and  determination  to 
find  the  remedy.  By  comparison  it  might 
be  shown  that  the  present  tendency  of  the 
Sunday  school  is  not  away  from  the  services 
of  the  church — there  are  reasons  for  believ- 
ing that  the  opposite  is  the  case  that  the 
former  days  were  not  better  in  this  respect 
than  the  great  days  in  which  we  are  now 
living. 

Because  so  many  leave  the  Sunday  school 
at  the  church  hour  may  not  reveal  an  actual 

105 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

decrease  of  interest  iu  public  worship  over 
former  times.  The  percentage  of  those  who 
left  at  the  close  of  the  school  session  when 
the  school  was  small  was  as  great,  if  not 
greater  tlian  it  is  to-day,  though  not  so 
noticeable  then  as  now,  because  the  crowd 
looks  bigger. 

Moreover,  the  organized  Adnlt  Bible 
Class  movement  within  seven  years  has  en- 
listed thousands  of  adults,  not  only  iu  Bible 
study,  but  also  in  tlie  services  and  work  of 
the  church.  Not  for  a  long  time  has  so 
much  interest  been  shown  in  the  matter  of 
securing  the  presence  of  children  at  the  pub- 
lic worship  as  in  these  opening  years  of  the 
new  century.  Records  of  attendance  at  pub- 
lic worship  are  now  being  kept  by  many 
schools.  Tlie  organization  of  go-to-church 
bands,  leagues,  and  guilds  is  a  movement 
that  is  growing  in  favor  and  success.  All  of 
these  movements  indicate  a  rising  interest 
upon  the  part  of  the  church  in  the  matter 
of  securing  the  presence  of  children  at  pub- 
lic worship. 

The  following  from  a.  questionnaire  was 
recently  addressed  to  a  number  of  pastors, 

106 


The  Sunday  School  and  Puhlic  Worship 

Siinclay-scliool  editors,  secretaries,  superin- 
tendents and  distingiiislied  leaders  in  the 
organized  Sunday-scliool  y/ork :  "How  over- 
come the  seeming  tendency  on  the  part  of 
children  and  young  people  of  the  Sunday 
school  to  drift  away  from  the  services  of 
the  church?"  From  the  list  of  responses  the 
following  are  attached.  They  are  valuable 
contributions  to  the  study  and  solution  of 
the  problem : 

Dear  Doctor  Font: 

Answering  jo\w  letter,  opened  to-day:  I 
think  there  is  no  trouble  whatever  in  hold- 
ing the  children  and  young  people  in  the 
church  if  the  church  services  are  made  at- 
tractive to  them. 

Very  truly  yours, 

John  Wanamaker. 
Sunday    ScJiool    SupcriutcndGnt,    Bethany 

Presbyterian  Church,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

My  dear  Brother : 

This  whole  matter  was  gone  over  with  a 
great  deal  of  care  by  us  the  other  day,  and 
it  was  the  frank  judgment  of  all  present  that 

107 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

it  was  as  difficult  a  question  as  the  church 
had  to  deal  with  just  now.  In  my  own  judg- 
ment, the  ideiil  plan  is  for  a  morning  service 
for  worship  and  an  afternoon  service  for 
Bible  study,  in  which  the  people  of  the 
church  and  the  classes  come  together  for 
that  purpose.  The  pastor  of  the  church 
should  have  charge  of  the  gathering,  and  de- 
vote as  much  of  his  time  to  it  as  to  any  other 
department  of  the  church. 

Yours  very  sincerely, 

John  Balcom  Shaw. 
Pastor  Second  Preshyterian  Church,  Chi- 
cago, III. 

Three  Oaks,  Michigan. 
Dear  Doctor  Fout: 

Your  letter  of  the  4th  inst.  has  been  re- 
ceived and  read  with  interest. 

Replying  to  your  question  as  to  the  drift 
of  the  Sunday  school  away  from  the  public 
worship  of  the  church,  permit  me  to  say 
that,  in  my  judgment,  it  would  seem  quite 
possible  to  overcome  such  a  tendency,  by 
a^lapting  the  church  services  to  the  Sunday 
school,  and  by  giving  the  school  some  place 

108 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

in  them.  Will  not  the  whole  church  in  the 
Sunday  school  bring  the  whole  Sunday 
school  into  the  church  ? 

Eev.  D.  H.  Class,  of  Pontiac,  Michigan, 
has  solved  this  problem  satisfactorily  to  him- 
self through  a  combination  service.  Oth- 
ers testify  to  the  success  of  the  plan.  I  trust 
your  letter  will  lead  to  most  excellent  re- 
sults in  many  churches. 

Very  sincerely  yours, 

E.  K.  Warren. 
Chairman  Board  of  Trustees,  International 

Sunday  School  Association. 

My  dear  Doctor : 

I  do  not  think  that  the  present  tendency 
of  our  Sunday-school  constituency  is  away 
from  the  church.  My  experience  leads  me  to 
believe  that  the  reverse  is  true.  More  and 
more  I  think  our  Sunday-school  workers  are 
coming  to  feel  the  importance  of  church  at- 
tendance. It  is  doubtless  true  that  many  of 
the  young  people,  especially  of  the  Junior 
years,  do  not  attend  church.  One  reason  for 
this,  however,  is  that  the  church  service  as 

at  present  arranged  does  not  take  the  Junior 
109 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

age  into  consideration.  The  church  service 
of  to-day  is  planned  almost  entirely  for  the 
grown-ups.  My  conviction  is  that  before  we 
can  get  more  of  our  scholars  into  the  church 
service,  we  must  plan  that  service  with  these 
young  folks  in  view.  We  are  not,  as  a  de- 
nomination, endorsing  any  combination 
service.  We  have  not  enough  information 
at  hand  to  positively  endorse  any  particu- 
lar plan.  Services  of  this  sort  seem  to  be 
verj^  successful  in  some  places,  but  not  in 
others.  Wish  I  might  have  the  privilege  of 
talking  these  matters  over  with  you. 

Faithfully  yours, 
David  G.  Downey. 
Corresponding  Secretary  Board  of  Sunday 
School  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Chi- 
cago, III. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

Replying  to  your  inquiry  concerning  the 
Sunday  school  and  the  church  service,  it  is 
my  judgment  that  three  parties  are  responsi- 
ble for  the  fact  that  not  more  of  the  members 
of  the  school  attend  the  preaching  service. 
I  do  not  suggest  any  order  of  priority,  but 
will  name  one.     First,  tlie  superintendent, 

110 


Tlie  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

wlio  should  always  call  the  attention  of  the 
school  to  the  preaching  service  and  kindly 
insist  that  all  remain  for  it.  This  is  assum- 
ing that  it  follows  the  Sunday  school  as  it 
generally  does.  He  should,  in  the  workers' 
meeting,  make  it  very  plain  that  the  teach- 
ers, all  of  them,  are  expected,  of  course,  to 
attend  the  preaching  service.  They  are  the 
authority  and  example  of  perfect  conduct  to 
the  pupils.  Thep  must  do  it.  Second,  the  pas- 
tor.  He  should  be  in  the  school  all  the  time 
as  an  example  to  the  laity  to  be  there.  Then 
he  should  request  the  presence  of  all  the 
school  in  the  public  service.  Boys  and  girls 
can  be  employed  in  the  opening  service  to 
sing;  to  sit  on  the  front  seat;  to  note  and 
write  down  the  text  and  its  location;  to 
usher  the  congregation ;  to  receive  the  offer- 
ing, etc.  He  should  preach  down  to  their 
understanding.  He  might  diagram  his  dis- 
course on  a  blackboard  for  them  to  copy,  if 
he  can  use  chalk.  He  should  be  present  in 
the  workers'  meeting  to  impress  there  his 
desires  and  plans  and  give  and  take  counsel. 
The  third  party  that  I  name  is  the  parents. 
Ill 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

It  is  an  urgent  duty  of  parents  to  train 
their  children  in  church  attendance  as  a 
habit  of  life.  To  "train"  includes  three 
steps.  1.  Precept.  A  raw  recruit  in  mili- 
tary service  is  told  that  he  must  "stand  erect 
with  heels  together  and  on  a  line ;  to  throw 
back  the  shoulders  and  to  lift  the  head;  to 
cast  the  eyes  upon  the  ground  sixty  paces  in 
front ;  and  to  place  the  little  finger  of  each 
hand  behind  the  seam  of  his  pantaloons." 
That  is  precept  correctly  stated;  and  it  is 
necessary;  but  the  recruit  does  not  under- 
stand. 2.  Example.  The  drill  sergeant 
now  shows  by  taking  the  position  himself, 
explaining  each  part  and  demonstrating  it ; 
but  that  is  still  insufficient.  He  must  next 
be  made  to  do  the  thing  himself.  That  is, 
3.  Compulsion.  Exactly  so  in  training 
the  "child  in  the  way  he  should  go,"  and  it 
is  the  duty  of  the  parents  to  do  it.  Deut. 
G :  6-9.  Precept  must  be  supported  by  ex- 
ample else  "your  acts  thunder  so  loud  that 
I  cannot  hear  what  you  ^ay^^ (Emerson), 
will  be  true.  In  addition,  the  parent  must 
compel,  if  necessary,  the  child's  attendance 

112 


The  Sunday  School  and  Piihlic  Worship 

at  church.  "If  my  child  could  attend  only- 
one  service  of  the  church,"  says  Bishop  Vin- 
cent, "that  must  be  the  preaching  service." 

Robert  Cowden. 

Secretary  Emeritus  Sunday  School  Board 

United  Brethren  Church,  Dayton,  Ohio. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

Replying  to  your  letter,  permit  me  to  sug- 
gest a  few  things  that  I  know  have  been 
tried  with  more  or  less  success,  with  refer- 
ence to  securing  the  attendance  of  Sunday- 
school  scholars  upon  the  regular  church 
services. 

First.  Give  the  pastor  a.  good,  fair  oppor- 
tunity, as  often  as  he  thinks  it  is  wise,  to 
speak  to  the  school  as  a  body  and  as  their 
pastor,  so  that  they  will  recognize  him  as  the 
chief  leader  of  all  departments  of  the 
church. 

Second.  We  have  dismissed  our  school  as 
a  body  into  the  auditorium  of  the  church, 
making  the  eleven  o'clock  preaching  hour 
the  closing  hour  for  the  school  that  day,  and 
giving  the  pupils  young  and  old  some  impor- 
tant part  in  the  service,  such  as  selecting 

113 


^hc  Child  and  the  Church 

and  singing  a  hymn  by  themselves,  or  some 
other  definite  part  of  the  service,  and  mak- 
ing all  of  it  bright  and  sharp  and  not  too 
long.  This  has  done  well  and  achieved  good 
results.  Later  on  we  excused  the  little  chil- 
dren of  tlie  beginners'  and  primary  depart- 
ments upon  attendance  at  this  service  be- 
cause it  was  almost  too  long  for  them. 

Third.  In  every  case  the  preacher  must 
make  special  preparations,  not  only  to  inter- 
est, l)ut  to  instruct  the  boys  and  girls  who 
wait  upon  his  ministry.  My  observation 
is,  tliat  where  the  pastor  lias  one  or  two  good 
paragraphs  especially  applicable  to  the 
young,  and  will  not  make  his  discourse  too 
long,  he  will  always  get  a  good  hearing  from 
the  younger  element. 

Fourth.  I  believe  that  it  is  quite  possible 
to  take  one  of  the  services  of  the  Sabbath 
day,  and  make  it  a  combination  service  for 
old  and  young,  and  this  might  be  alternated 
between  the  morning  hour  and  the  evening 
hour. 

Fifth.  I  do  not  know  any  church  that  has 
fully  worked  this  matter  out  to  its  highest 

114 


The  Sunday  School  and  Piihlic  Worship 

efficiency,  but  I  assure  you  it  is  a  pressing 
ueed,  and  one  about  which  I  have  thought  a 
great  deal.  V^e  can  certainly  never  expect 
loyal  goers  to  church  in  its  regular  services 
unless  we  train  the  children  when  j-oung, 
and  it  is  not  at  all  impossible,  because  it  is 
being  done  by  quite  a  good  many,  and  there 
is  no  hardship  in  it  to  the  young. 

Sixth.  Every  local  church  should  be  pro- 
vided with  a  manual  of  service  embodying 
the  very  best  helps,  and  the  most  successful 
of  the  methods  being  used,  to  overcome  the 
tendency  of  the  Sunday  school  to  drift 
away  from  the  church  service.  I  am  glad 
you  are  sending  out  this  questionnaire  to 
gather  the  best  information  and  experience 
from  various  sources.  I  trust  you  will  put 
the  results  of  your  inquiry  in  permanent 
form,  as  a  means  of  helping  to  solve  this  im- 
portant problem. 

Wishing  you  all  blessings  in  your  work, 
I  am,  Yours  truly, 

J.  R.  Pepper. 
Sunday  School  Superintendent  First  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church,  South,  Memphis, 
Tennessee. 

115 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

My  dear  Brother: 

Replying  to  yonr  inquiry,  IIow  overcome 
the  seeming  tendency  of  the  Sunday  school 
to  drift  away  from  the  church  service?  Let 
me  say  in  my  judgment  much  depends, 

1.  On  the  attitude  and  conduct  of  the  of- 
ficers and  teachers  of  the  Sunday  school. 
I^xample  and  the  law  of  imitation  mean 
much  in  child  life. 

2.  Much  depends  on  the  nature  of  the 
public  worship  or  serA'ice.  Children  are  not 
interested  in  sermons  preached  directly  at 
them.  The  story  form  must  be  used  in  in- 
structing them  from  the  pulpit  as  well  as  in 
Sunday  school.  It  is  called  the  indirect 
method.  Let  the  child  do  his  own  moraliz- 
ing. 

3.  Some  churches  have  what  is  called  the 
Junior  Congregation — music,  prayer,  scrip- 
ture, sermon — all  adapted  to  child  life.  I 
would  have  the  ushers  and  collectors  also  of 
the  younger  people. 

4.  I  think  another  way  to  counteract 
the  tendency'  of  which  j'ou  spetik  is  to  revert 
to  the  home.    There  must  be  definite  teach- 

116 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

ing  and  acting  on  the  part  of  parents  as  to 
the  importance  of  public  worship. 

5.  We  need  to  make  our  public  worship 
quite  attractive  in  dignity  and  spirit,  im- 
pressing upon  the  children  the  fact  that  God 
is  present.  We  cannot  implant  in  them  a 
real  reverence  apart  from  the  public  wor- 
ship of  the  church. 

Yours,  as  ever, 
Charles  W.  Brewbaker. 
Secretary   Sunday   School   Board,   United 

Brethren  Church,  Dayton,  Ohio. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

I  hardly  know  what  to  say  in  answer  to 
your  question  concerning  the  combining  of 
the  Sunday  school  and  church  service.  I 
have  never  had  the  opportunity  of  observing 
its  working  for  any  length  of  time,  neither 
have  we  had  any  experience  in  that  line  in 
our  school.  I  believe  if  the  same  ingenuity 
would  be  used  in  working  up  congregations 
for  our  regular  worship  that  has  been  used 
in  Sunday-school  work,  the  conditions  would 
be  different.    In  the  combination  of  the  two 

117 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

the  element  of  worship  tends  to  disappear, 
a  weakness  which  is  already  appalling  in  all 
Protestant  churches,  and  which,  in  my  hum- 
ble judgment  is  the  real  cause  of  empty 
pews.  I  should  like  to  observe  the  working 
of  the  new  system  for  a  period  of  ten  years 
in  some  church  before  adopting  it. 

We  have  one  of  the  oldest  men's  classes  in 
the  church.  Our  average  attendance  for  five 
years  has  been  sixty-five  to  seventy.  I  took  a 
test  not  long  ago  and  found  eighty  per  cent, 
of  my  class  to  be  fairly  regular  in  church  at- 
tendance, and  frequently  I  see  half  a  dozen 
fellows  who  were  late  for  class  find  places 
in  the  morning  services.  In  our  Sunday- 
school  councils,  the  teachers  are  urged  to 
keep  the  ideal  of  regular  church  attendance 
before  the  classes.  Of  course,  many  are  in 
the  Sunday  school  who  are  not  in  the  churcli 
but  our  congregations  are  twice  as  large 
and  more  regular  than  they  were  in  the  old 
daj^s  of  a  moribund  Sunday  school. 
Very  cordially  yours, 

A.  B.  Statton. 
Pastor  8t.  Paul  United  Brethren  Churchy 

Eagerstown,  Md. 

118 


The  Bunday  School  and  Pnhlic  Worship 

Dear  Doctor  Font: 

Concerning  yonr  inqniry  permit  me  to  say 
as  follows: 

We  shall  understand  our  problem  better  if 
we  approach  it  from  a  comparative  point  of 
view.  Not  many  years  ago,  we  had  more 
members  in  the  chnrch  than  in  the  Sunday 
school.  Attendance  at  church  was  larger 
than  the  school.  To-day  conditions  are  re- 
versed in  many  places.  The  school  enroll- 
ment and  attendance  is  much  larger  than 
the  church  membership.  Now,  I  find  that 
the  average  attendance  at  public  worsliip  on 
the  part  of  the  church  membership  is  equal 
to,  if  not  above  what  it  was  two  decades 
ago,  and  that  there  is  no  real  abatement  of 
interest  in  the  regular  worship  of  the 
church.  It  is  easy  for  us  to  be  mistaken  in 
our  estimates  in  this  day  of  such  marvelous 
Sunday-school  progress.  When  our  school 
was  one-fiftli  as  large  as  it  is  now,  the  per- 
centage of  those  who  left  at  the  close  of  the 
school  session  was  as  great  or  greater  than 
it  is  to-day.  I  speak  from  personal  observa- 
tion and  comparisons  in  my  own  school, 

119 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Moreover,  I  am  willing  to  stand  this  ap- 
parent lack  of  interest  in  public  worship  on 
the  part  of  the  Bible-school  people,  when  I 
remember  that  the  Bible-school  atmosphere 
and  training  has  transformed  the  life  of  the 
church  as  well  as  contributed  ninety-eight 
per  cent,  to  its  numerical  increase,  and  the 
actual  working  ability  and  efficiency  of  the 
church  has  been  multiplied  many  fold  by 
the  training  given  in  the  school. 

We  are  experimenting  on  the  combined 
service,  not  to  overcome  what  to  some  may 
seem  to  be  the  difficulty  of  getting  the  schol- 
ars into  the  preaching  service — our  attend- 
ance is  fine  from  the  school — but  as  a  means 
of  securing  the  best  spiritual  results  for  the 
greatest  number.  The  preacher  cannot  be 
at  his  best  after  he  has  given  as  he  should  of 
himself  in  the  Bible-school  session.  There 
is  also  the  danger  of  surfeit  on  preaching. 
One  solid  sermon  a  Sunday  is  enough  preach- 
ing to  fire  for  tremendous  activity  the  soul 
that  has  properly  learned  its  Bible-school 
lesson.  (There  is  really  too  much  preaching 
now  in  some  of  our  adult  Bible  classes.) 

120 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

The  difficulty  of  conducting  the  com- 
bined service  so  as  to  retain  its  reverence 
and  dignity  can  be  overcome  by  tactful  man- 
agement from  the  i)latform.  Practice  will 
develop  stateliuess  and  devotion.  The  pas- 
tor conducting  the  last  quarter  of  an  hour 
will  be  able  to  sound  a  deep  spiritual  and 
devotional  note.  Last  Sunday  a  combined 
service  was  held  for  the  administering  of  the 
Lord's  Supper.  Five  hundred  and  fifty  com- 
muned, and  the  whole  service  was  decorous 
and  deeply  impressive. 

Yours,  as  ever, 
Charles  W.  Kecard. 
Pastor  First  United  Brethren  Church,  Can- 
tony  Ohio. 

Dear  Brother  Fout: 

Replying  to  your  inquiry,  I  do  not  know 
that  I  can  be  of  much  service  to  you,  but  will 
do  my  best. 

It  was  my  privilege  to  attend  a  church  re- 
cently where  the  experiment  is  being  made 
of  making  the  closing  part  of  the  Sunday- 
school  program  identical  with  the  church 

121 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

service.  This  school  begins  its  work  at  ten- 
thirty,  the  lesson  period  being  concluded  at 
ten  minutes  after  eleven.  The  school  then 
marches  back  and  the  pastor  takes  up  the 
morning  service.  Practically  all  the  chil- 
dren are  at  the  preaching  service.  I  did  not 
notice  many  people  coming  in,  however,  for 
the  church  alone.  It  is  an  interesting  exper- 
iment, however, 

I  know  another  church  where  the  pastor 
has  organized  a  league  among  the  children. 
He  gives  them  a  gold  badge  with  the  letters 
L.  W.  C.  These  letters  hold  a  secret.  The 
badge  is  to  be  retained  only  so  long  as  the 
members  are  faithful  to  the  morning  wor- 
ship. I  m^j  say  to  you,  without  violating 
any  confidences,  that  the  letters  stand  for 
The  League  of  Worshiping  Children. 

Another  church  is  trying  the  experiment 
of  a  combination  service  once  a  month, 
when  the  entire  Sunday  school  is  retained 
at  the  church  service.  The  exercises  do  not 
overlap,  but  the  one  leads  right  up  to  the 
other. 


122 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

Of  course,  you  recognize  that  all  the  bur- 
den of  securing  attendance  at  the  church 
services  is  not  on  the  Sunday  school.  The 
preacher,  the  church  officials,  and  the  church 
ushers  have  never  hurt  themselves  planning 
to  win  a  large  attendance.  I  think  they 
ought  to  bear  at  least  half  the  responsibil- 
ity. We  might  justly  say  that  we  give  to 
the  morning  service  as  large  a  proportion  of 
our  constituency  as  the  church  officials  give 
the  Sunday  school  from  theirs. 

Tlie  subject  is  a  great  one  though  I 
think  it  is  greatly  exaggerated.  I  have  no 
question  that  we  are  doing  better  than  we 
ever  liave  done,  though  we  might  do  a  great 
deal  better. 

Yours  sincerely, 

I.  J.  Van  Ness. 
Editor  Sunday  School  PuhUcations  South- 
ern Baptist  Church,  Nashville,  Tenn. 

My  dear  Doctor : 

I  do  not  know  of  any  congregation  that 
has  successfully  overcome  the  tendency  of 
the  Sunday  school  to  drift  away  from  the 

123 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

stated  cliurcli  services.  It  is,  for  the  present, 
one  of  onr  unsolved  problems.  In  onr  Prot- 
estant ehiirclies  the  main  feature  of  the  serv- 
ice is  the  sermon,  and  this,  as  a  general  rule, 
is  bej'^ond  the  comprehension  of  children. 
One  of  onr  churches  in  Kansas  City,  Mis- 
souri, is  endeavoring  to  overcome  the  diffi- 
culty by  having  the  children's  service  in  the 
Sunday-school  room  at  the  same  hour  as  the 
adult  service  in  the  auditorium.  This  does 
not  strike  me,  however,  as  satisfactory.  Our 
children  need  the  spiritual  culture  that  can 
come  only  through  the  worship  of  the  great 
congregation.  If  we  could  have  a  service 
for  worship  and  another  for  preaching,  it 
might  enable  us  to  solve  this  problem,  but, 
for  the  present,  I  do  not  see  how  this  is  pos- 
sible. It  seems  to  me  that,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, the  best  we  can  do  is  for  the 
pastors  to  take  some  pains  to  adapt  their 
services,  and  especially  their  sermons  to  the 
young. 

Yours  faithfully, 

E.  B.  Chappel. 
Editor  Sunday  School  Publications  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  Church,  South,  Nashville, 
Tennessee. 

124 


The  Sunday  School  and  Puhlic  Worship 

Dear  Doctor  Fout : 

Replying  to  your  inquiry  concerning  the 
Sunday  school  and  public  worship,  let  me 
say  that  not  five  minutes  ago  the  chairman 
of  our  Presbytery's  committee  on  Sunday- 
school  work  was  in  the  room  consulting  with 
me  about  an  early  meeting  of  the  Presby- 
terian Sunday-scliool  superintendents  of 
Philadelphia,  at  which  this  very  question  is 
to  be  considered.  It  is  the  plan  of  the  com- 
mittee to  have  two  superintendents  tell  what 
they  are  doing  to  secure  the  attendance  of 
the  members  of  the  school  at  the  church  serv- 
ices. The  several  pastors  will  tell  what  they 
are  doing  to  co-operate,  each  with  the  super- 
intendent of  his  own  school.  Several  pastors 
who  have  been  signally  successful  in  giving 
short  sermons  to  children  at  the  morning 
service  will  tell  of  their  successes  and  fail- 
ures. One  pastor  will  preach  a  children's 
sermon  to  a  company  of  children  gathered 
in  the  neighborhood.  In  connection  with 
the  services  there  will  be  given  the  result  of 
a  canvass  now  being  made  of  the  Presbyter- 
ian churches  of  Philadelphia,  to  see  exactly 

125 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

how  many  children  fifteen  years  old  or 
yonnger  are  in  attendance  at  the  services  on 
the  Sabbaths  of  December. 

You  see  that  we  have  been  studying  the 
same  problem  here. 

Very  sincerely  yours, 

John  T.  Faris. 
Editor,  Sunday  School  Puhlications  Presby- 
terian Church,  Philadcl phia,  Pa. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

Since  last  summer,  I  have  been  following 
the  plan  of  preaching  to  the  boys  and  girls 
of  the  Sabbath  school  on  the  first  Sabbath 
of  each  month.  A  boy  and  girl  choir  of  about 
twenty  takes  part  in  the  song  service.  The 
sermon  is  about  twenty-two  to  twenty-four 
minutes  in  length.  The  plan  is  working  well 
and  is  bringing  results.  Some  of  the 
youngsters  are  attending  every  Sabbath.  I 
make  the  sermon  just  as  simple  as  possible, 
and  yet  try  to  have  a  real  sermon,  not  a  kin- 
dergarten talk.  It  is  a  suggestive  fact  that 
the  older  people  seem  to  take  to  the  sermon 
for  cliildren  with  considerable  avidity.     If 

126 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

you  can  do  something  toward  bringing  Sun- 
day school  and  church  into  closer  organic 
relations,  making  them  really  one,  as  they 
ought  to  be,  you  will  do  something  abun- 
dantly worth  while. 

Sincerely  yours, 

W.  E.  McCulloch. 
Pastor,  First  United  Preshyteria)i  Church, 
Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

I  realize  the  problem  of  which  you  speak 
is  one  of  the  great  problems  of  the  church 
and  Bible  school. 

To  keep  the  pupils  for  the  preaching 
service  after  Bible  school,  the  following 
plans  have  worked  very  well :  To  have  the 
class  and  teacher  sit  together  in  preaching 
service;  the  teacher  to  make  a  special  re- 
quest each  Lord's  Day  morning  that  all 
members  of  the  class  remain;  the  record  of 
attendance  at  preaching  service  kept;  give 
the  Bible  school  something  to  do  in  the 
preaching  service;  make  special  mention 
from  the  pulpit  of  tlie  presence  of  the  classes 

127 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

from  tlie  Bible  school;  make  the  morning 
preaching  service  not  too  long;  eliminate 
many  announcements ;  eliminate  stereotyped 
opening;  join  the  Bible  school  and  preach- 
ing service  together  as  nearly  as  possible. 

Another  plan  is  to  contest  with  some  other 
church  or  school  and  see  which  can  have 
the  larger  number  remain  for  preaching 
service. 

Our  method  of  combining  the  two  services 
proved  very  successful  for  the  hot  weather 
period.  I  do  not  deem  it  advisable,  how- 
ever, for  the  rest  of  the  year,  under  present 
conditions. 

With  every  good  wish, 

Sincerely  yours, 

P.  H.  Welshiraer. 
Pastor,  First  Christian  Church,  Canton,  0. 

Dear  Doctor  Fout: 

In  reply  to  your  inquiry,  will  say  that  the 
problem  is  giving  our  people  no  little  con- 
cern. I  do  not  know  of  any  local  church 
that  has  succeeded  in  solving  it  effectually. 

When  I  was  pastor,  at  my  Sunday  school 

128 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

in  the  morning,  I  succeeded  in  getting  a 
large  number  of  scholars  to  attend  the 
morning  service  by  offering  them  rewards  at 
the  end  of  the  year  for  regular  attendance  at 
church,  making  forty-five  Sundays  the  limit. 
This  was  not  given  to  them  as  a  reward  for 
church  going,  but  as  an  expression  of  appre- 
ciation for  doing  their  duty.  Of  course,  I 
had  to  bring  the  matter  of  the  duty  of  pub- 
lic worship  very  strongly  before  them.  I 
do  not  know  of  any  other  way  to  get  it  than 
by  enlisting  the  teachers  and  superintendent 
to  exert  their  influence  upon  the  scholars  to 
attend  public  worship,  and  by  the  pastor 
laying  it  upon  the  hearts  of  the  children 
from  his  own  heart. 

Yours  cordially, 

Charles  S.  Albert, 
Late  Editor^  Sunday  School  Publications, 
Lutheran  Church,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

Your  letter  regarding  the  question  of  the 
tendency  of  the  Sunday  school  to  drop  away 
from  public  worship  is  received.    A  number 

129 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

of  schools  with  which  I  am  familiar  have 
their  Sunday-school  records  marked  as  to 
whether  the  pupils  have  attended  at  least 
one  church  service  since  the  Sundaj'-school 
session  of  the  week  before.  This  helps 
somewhat  in  the  direction  you  indicate. 

Another  plan  that  I  find  in  my  own  school 
to  be  helpful,  is  to  have  the  pastor  given  a 
prominent  place  in  the  Sundaj^-school  serv- 
ice, as  I  count  him  the  first  officer  in  our 
school.  This  brings  the  children  and  younger 
people  in  touch  with  the  pastor,  and  in  this 
closer  relation  they  follow  him  into  the 
church  service. 

There  are  several  churches  that  I  have 
heard  of,  but  none  that  I  can  quote  with  au- 
thority, that  are  just  now  trying  to  combine 
the  main  church  service  and  the  Sunday 
school  into  a  two  hour  session,  beginning  at 
ten  o'clock  and  closing  at  twelve,  having  a 
Junior  and  an  adult  choir  assist  in  the  mu- 
sic, thus  combining  the  church  anthem  with 
the  special  Sunday-school  song.  The  whole 
congregation,  which  includes  the  Sunday 
school,  is  seated  in  classes,  each  of  them  hav- 

130 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

ing  a  teacher.  A  short  sermon  g:ood  for 
adults,  and  which  the  children  can  under- 
stand, is  preached  by  the  pastor,  and  the  va- 
rious classes  are  also  taught  a  twenty  or 
thirty  minute  lesson  by  the  teachers,  and  the 
two  hours  are  so  conducted  that  you  could 
not  tell  in  an}-  one  thirty  minutes  of  the 
period  whether  it  was  church  or  Sunday 
school — the  fact  is,  it  is  both  from  start  to 
finish. 

In  other  words,  they  are  injecting,  by  hav- 
ing a  little  more  time  for  it,  the  teaching 
function  into  the  main  church  service  and 
adapting  that  teaching  to  the  youngest  child 
as  well  as  the  oldest  and  most  experienced 
adult.  I  believe  myself  that  some  day  we 
shall  come  very  largely  to  this  way  of  doing 
our  work.  This  may  not  throw  much  light 
upon  your  question,  but  these  are  some  of 
the  thoughts  that  have  come  to  me  as  I  have 
observed  the  situation  and  heard  this  ques- 
tion discussed. 

With  best  wishes,  I  am, 

Most  cordially, 

Hugh  Cork. 
Assistant  General  Secretary  International 

Sunday  School  Association^  Chicago,  III. 

131 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Dear  Doctor  Fout: 

Your  question,  "What  can  be  done  to  over- 
come the  tendency  of  the  Sunday  school  to 
drift  away  from  the  church?"  depends  upon 
what  answers  can  be  given  to  certain  other 
questions.     Those  questions  are : 

1.  Is  it  advisable  that  the  children  should 
attend  the  church  service?  In  olden  times 
it  was  thought  to  be  very  necessary  that  they 
should  attend.  In  my  young  days,  all  the 
family,  practically,  were  present  at  the 
morning  service.  When  the  time  for  the 
service  arrived,  it  was  assumed  that  all  we 
youngsters  would  be  ready  for  church.  No 
light  excuse  was  of  any  avail  for  not  going. 
Usually  no  excuse  was  thought  of.  Looking 
back  upon  those  days,  it  seems  delightful — 
the  remembrance  of  the  pews  being  filled 
with  old  and  young,  down  even  to  those  who 
nestled  in  the  laps  of  the  elders !  I  do  not 
remember  that  attendance  at  church  was 
ever  felt  as  a  hardship  by  the  young.  We 
had  come  to  think  of  it  as  inevitable,  and, 
hence,  that  it  must  be  right.  Of  course, 
going  to  church  was  not  universal;  for  ev- 
132 


The  Sunday  School  and  Puhlic  Worship 

erywhere  there  were  families  who  were  not 
church-goers,  and  their  children  were  not 
compelled  or  urged  to  go;  but,  generally,^ 
people  on  the  Sabbath  went  to  the  sanctu- 
ary, and  thought  that  those  who  did  not  go 
were  little  better  than  heathen. 

What  was  the  effect  upon  the  young  of 
regular  attendance  upon  the  church?  Cer- 
tainly, at  least,  it  got  them  into  the  habit  of 
going.  It  made  them  feel  uncomfortable  if 
by  chance  it  was  omitted;  much  as  if  they 
had  failed  to  "say"  a  prayer  at  night.  Those 
who  were  free  to  spend  Sunday  as  they  chose 
did  not  form  any  such  habit.  I  have  yet  to 
learn  that  any  one  was  attracted  toward  the 
church  by  his  disregard  of  church  at- 
tendance. It  may,  therefore,  be  set  down 
in  favor  of  church  going  by  the  young  that 
it  cultivates  a  good  habit. 

It  did  more  than  this,  judging  from  my 
own  early  recollections,  for  now  and  then 
the  preachers  said  some  things,  amid  things 
incomprehensible  and  uninterestitig  to  me, 
which  mightily  stirred  my  conscience  and 
roused  deep  emotion.   Pity  it  was  that  none 

133 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

knew  of  their  effect!  For,  boy-like,  I  kept 
my  feelings  to  myself,  and  the  older  people 
were  so  little  interested  in  the  affairs  of  lit- 
tle ones !  In  one  of  those  experiences  I  came 
very  near  going  up  to  the  "mourners'  bench,'^ 
and  askino-  for  the  privilege  of  confessing 
Christ.  But  my  parents  were  not  with  me, 
and  I  hesitated  at  doing  something  of  which 
they  might  not  approve.  For  weeks  after, 
I  felt  self -reproached  at  my  failure  to  obey 
my  conscience.  It  would  have  been  so  easy 
for  me  then  to  have  become  a  Christian — so 
much  harder  for  me  when  I  did  so  later;  as 
the  Savior  said  of  the  little  ones,  "Of  such 
is  the  kingdom  of  heaven."  I  tell  this  ex- 
perience onl}'^  for  the  purpose  of  showing 
how  the  very  young  may  be  influenced  by 
church  attendance. 

2.  Do  the  parents  ivant  the  children  to 
attend  chureli  service?  Apparently  not. 
There  is  not  the  same  authority  shown  by 
them  in  requiring  their  children  to  be  pres- 
ent at  the  church  on  Sunday.  Family  disci- 
pline is  lax  here  as  in  so  many  other  cases. 
Parents  are  relying  too  much  upon  the  Sun- 

134 


The  Sunday  School  and  Puhlic  Worship 

day  school  and  the  Christian  Endeavor  so- 
ciety. They  think  that  the  two  services  upon 
the  Sabbath  are  enough  for  the  little  ones. 
They  trust  that  in  those  two  services  they 
will  receive  such  an  impulse  in  the  right  di- 
rection that  when  they  are  mature  they  will 
graduate  from  those  youthful  institutions 
into  the  church.  Perhaps  many  of  them 
will;  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  they  will;  but 
would  not  this  be  made  more  certain  if 
from  their  infancy  up  they  kept  in  the 
church? 

3.  Does  the  Sunday  school  wish  the 
scholars  to  attend  church  service?  From 
the  fact  that  nothing  is  done  about  it,  the 
answer  is  in  the  negative.  Such  also  seems 
to  be  the  attitude  of  the  Christian  Endeavor 
Society.  If  either  institution  thought  the 
matter  of  enough  importance,  they  would 
make  strenuous  endeavor  to  secure  it.  In- 
asmuch as  neither  emphasizes  its  conse- 
quence, the  matter  goes  by  default.  Ques- 
tioned, I  think  that  the  workers  in  both  in- 
stitutions would  admit  the  desirability  of 
church  attendance  by  the  young,  but  actions 
speak  louder  than — silence. 

135 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

What,  then,  is  the  remedy?  First,  the 
church  must  show  that  she  wants  the  at- 
tendance of  the  children.  She  has  been  too 
indifferent  about  their  staying  away  her- 
self. If  she  should  show  a  real  interest  in 
the  matter,  parents,  and  Sunday  school,  and 
Christian  Endeavor  would  be  quick  to  re- 
spond. In  some  churches  this  desire  for  the 
presence  of  the  young  is  exhibited  in  the 
form  of  a  little  sermon  preached  to  the 
children  before  the  regular  sermon.  I 
could  name  some  churches  where  this  pre- 
liminary sermon  is  quite  effective  in  secur- 
ing little  hearers.  Even  without  this,  pres- 
sure can  be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  family 
through  the  pastor,  church  committee,  etc. 
The  chief  thing  to  do  is  to  make  the  fam- 
ily feel  the  importance  of  making  th«  chil- 
dren early  acquainted  with  the  church.  The 
Sunday  school  and  Christian  Endeavor  are 
merely  the  organized  efforts  of  tlie  church, 
and  are  not  to  be  compared  with  the  church 
itself.  They  are  the  gateways  into  the 
church,  and  are  not  to  be  taken  as  substi- 
tutes for  it.  Some  parents  are  delusively  re- 
garding them  as  "the  children's  church." 

136 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

The  third  thing  is  to  get  the  Sunday 
school  and  the  Christian  Endeavor  to  be 
helpers  in  inducing  the  children  to  attend 
the  church.  In  some  schools  and  societies 
this  is  done  by  asking  for  a  show  of  hands 
of  those  who  have  been  at  the  morning  serv- 
ice. In  others,  by  marking  the  attendance 
at  the  service  on  the  class  cards,  this  attend- 
ance appearing  on  the  blackboard  at  the  end 
of  the  quarter.  In  various  ways  the  superin- 
tendent of  the  school  can  show  his  gratifica- 
tion at  any  signs  of  increasing  interest  in 
church  attendance. 

The  fact  is,  we  can  have  the  attendance  of 
the  children  upon  the  church — if  tee  want  it. 
If  we  do  not  get  it,  it  is  because  we  do  not 
care  for  it  enough.  The  children  are  the 
care  of  the  church.  The  church  should  so 
discharge  her  responsibility  that  she  should 
be  able  to  say,  "Behold,  I  and  the  children 
whom  Jehovah  hath  given  me  are  for  signs 
and  for  wonders  in  Israel  from  Jehovah  of 
hosts,  who  dwelleth  in  mount  Zion." 

M.  C.  Hazard. 
Editor  Emeritus,  Sunday  School  Publica- 
tions   Congregational    Church,    Boston, 
Mass. 

137 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

I  have  Your  favor  making  inquiry  as  to 
how  secure  the  attendance  of  the  Sunday 
school  at  the  regular  services  of  the  church. 
I  am  glad  to  inform  you  of  a  plan  I  worked 
out  about  five  years  ago.  We  call  it  "The 
Combination  Plan."  I  enclose  the  pam- 
phlet containing  the  outline  in  detail  for 
any  use  you  may  desire  to  make  of  it.  We  use 
the  graded  lessons  and  are  greatly  pleased 
with  them.  All  the  main  features  of  the 
regular  school  can  be  carried  out  in  our 
coiiibination  plan.  We  are  lengthening  the 
Bible  study  period  a  little  for  the  reason 
that  the  members  of  the  school  desire  it. 
Very  cordially  yours, 

D.  Hasler  Glass. 
Pastor  First  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 

Po n  tiac,  Mich  iga  n. 

The  following  is  the  outline  of  "The  Com- 
bination Plan/'  of  which  Dr.  Glass  is  the 
xiuthor : 

1.  Organ  voluntary. 

2.  Hymn. 

138 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

3.  Prayer. 

4.  Gloria  or  Doxology. 

5.  Scripture  Lesson. 

6.  Collection  and  special  music  by  the 

choir. 

7.  Notices. 

8.  Sermon. 

9.  Brief  prayer. 

10.  Hymn. 

11.  Bible  study. 

12.  Secretary's  report. 

13.  Hymn. 

14.  Benediction. 

"The  members  of  the  Sunday  school  and 
the  members  of  the  congregation  assemble 
at  the  hour  of  the  preaching  service  and  are 
seated  in  the  auditorium.  The  service  is 
divided  into  three  periods  of  one-half  hour 
each.  The  first  covers  the'  first  seven 
numbers  of  the  order  of  service.  The  sec- 
ond is  occupied  by  number  eight,  the  ser- 
mon, and  the  third  is  devoted  to  Bible 
study,  numbers  ten  to  fourteen.  At  the  close 
of  the  sermon  the  pastor  announces  that  the 
classes  will  immediately  assemble  for  Bible 

139 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

study  after  the  singing  of  the  hjmn,  and 
reminds  the  congregation  that  the  service  is 
not  ended,  bnt  that  it  will  be  in  a  half  hour. 
Polite  ushers  are  stationed  at  the  doors  to 
give  a  personal  invitation  to  strangers,  or 
others  who  might  leave  the  room,  to  remain 
for  Bible  study.  The  members  of  the  church 
are  loyal,  and  most  strangers  are  curious  to 
see  the  new  plan  to  the  end  of  the  service; 
hence  the  whole  congregation  remains  for 
the  Sunday  school.  There  is  not  another 
opening  service ;  but  all  proceed  to  the  study 
of  the  lesson  at  once.  There  is  no  complaint 
if  this  part  of  the  service  lasts  a  little  longer 
than  thirty  minutes,  and  yet  it  is  better  to 
run  on  schedule  time — the  people  will  be 
more  likely  to  want  to  come  back  again. 

"Tlie  following  are  the  advantages  of  the 
plan: 

"It  holds  the  adults  to  the  Sunday  school. 
More  than  ninety  per  cent,  of  the  congrega- 
tion remain  for  the  Sunday-school  lesson 
study.  The  importance  of  this  achievement 
cannot  be  estimated.  It  has  been  almost  im- 
possible to  arouse  a  general  interest  in  Bible 

140 


The  Sunday  School  and  Piiblic  Worship 

study.  Many  members  of  our  cliurcli  never 
read  the  Bible;  few  seriously  study  it. 
Our  people  are  destroyed  for  lack  of  knowl- 
edge. Every  religious  fad  seeks  its  victims 
among  church  members,  for  the  reason  that 
they  are  not  familiar  with  the  simplest 
teachings  of  the  Word.  Heresy,  unbelief, 
indifference,  and  fanaticism  are  in  most 
cases  easily  traceable  to  a  lack  of  biblical 
knowledge.  Happy  is  that  pastor  whose  en- 
tire membership  is  given  to  the  study  of  the 
Bible ;  and  happy  is  that  people  which  has  a 
fair  chance  to  study  it  under  competent 
teachers. 

It  secures  the  presence  of  more  than 
ninety-five  per  cent,  of  the  Sunday  school 
at  the  preaching  service — an  achievement 
which  the  church  has  sought  for  many  years. 
If  it  accomplished  nothing  more  than  this, 
it  would  furnish  sufficient  reason  for  every 
Protestant  church  to  break  up  the  old  forms 
and  adjust  itself  to  the  easy  solution  of  its 
greatest  problem. 

It  solves  the  problem  of  holding  the  boys 
to  the  church  services  and  Sunday  school. 

141 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

On  the  occasion  of  one  of  the  anniversaries 
as  superintendent  of  his  great  Sunday 
school,  Mr.  Wanamaker  said :  "If  I  had  my 
life  to  live  over,  I  would  do  different.  I 
would  try  harder  to  get  the  fathers  in  the 
Sunday  school.  Get  the  fathers  and  you 
have  the  whole  family."  This  has  been  dem- 
onstrated to  be  literally  trne  in  our  consoli- 
dated service.  The  fathers  remain  in  the 
Sunday  school  and  the  boys  follow  their  ex- 
ample. Not  only  are  the  boys  enthusiastic 
in  their  praise  of  the  services,  but  boys  who 
had  left  the  school  are  coming  back  and  at- 
tending regularh'. 

"It  has  increased  the  interest  and  attend- 
ance of  our  rural  population.  One  of  the 
most  serious  problems  the  church  meets  is 
that  of  reaching  the  farming  population. 
Country  life  is  not  less  conducive  to  relig- 
ion than  city  life,  but  it  is  less  convenient 
in  the  countrj-  to  attend  church  than  it  is  in 
the  city.  By  personal  inquiry  I  have  dis- 
covered that  the  chief  reason  why  the  farm- 
ers do  not  attend  church  is  that  they  cannot 
go  and  take  the  cliildren  witli  them  on  ac- 

142 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

count  of  the  lengthy  services.  When  they 
do  go  it  is  so  late  when  they  return  home 
that  by  the  time  dinner  is  over  it  is  time 
to  do  the  chores,  and  they  have  no  time  for 
rest  or  for  the  cultivation  of  family  life. 
Under  the  consolidated  plan  with  its  short- 
ened service,  there  has  been  a  marked  in- 
crease in  the  attendance  of  the  rural  popula- 
tion. 

"It  improves  the  preaching.  A  discrimi- 
nating minister  will  almost  intuitively 
adapt  his  preaching  to  the  character  of  his 
audience.  Dr.  Tyng  once  said,  "If  more 
ministers  would  preach  to  the  children  in 
their  congregations,  more  people  would  un- 
derstand their  minister."  The  presence  of 
the  children  is  an  inspiration  to  the  preach- 
er. He  who  preaches  "in  the  demonstration 
of  the  Spirit  and  of  power,"  will  have  no 
difficulty  in  preaching  to  a  congregation  in 
which  the  children  are  present.  The 
preacher  must  be  brief.  He  must  keep  with- 
in the  thirty-minute  limit.  This  will  be  a 
genuine  hardship  for  man^^  speakers,  but  a 
great   boon    to   their   congregations.      The 

143 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

dread  of  a  long  sermon  keeps  more  people 
from  attending  church  than  ministers  are 
aware  of.  We  hear  many  preachers  ridicule 
the  "cant  about  short  sermons,"  but  we 
never  hear  their  congregations  make  light 
of  it.  The  supreme  end  of  preaching  is  to 
"catch  men,"  and  not  to  consume  bait.  The 
chief  reason  why  ministers  do  not  increase 
in  power  and  effectiveness  as  they  grow  in 
knowledge  and  experience,  is  that  they  in- 
sist upon  exhausting  their  fund  of  informa- 
tion on  pulpit  themes  every  time  they  dis- 
cuss them. 

Following  are  some  of  the  practical  re- 
sults from  the  new  plan : 

"The  morning  congregation  has  increased 
fifty  per  cent,  and  is  still  growing.  The 
Sunday  school  has  increased  nearly  three 
hundred  per  cent.  The  enthusiasm  has 
grown  correspondingly.  The  people  are 
most  enthusiastic  over  the  plan  and  many 
are  attracted  to  the  church  who  have  not 
been  in  the  habit  of  attending.  Only  from 
five  to  ten  per  cent,  of  the  congregation 

144 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

leave  after  the  preaching  service.  Some  of 
these  are  strangers  who  "dropped  in,"  and 
some  are  persons  who  could  not  have  come 
to  church  but  for  the  short  service. 

"One  of  the  most  notable  features  of  the 
plan  is  the  men's  Sunday-school  class.  This 
class  is  taught  by  the  pastor,  and  before  the 
consolidation  averaged  from  four  to  six, 
and  occasionally  as  many  as  eight  might  re- 
main for  the  school  hour;  but  now  the  act- 
ual attendance  at  the  men's  class  is  nearly 
twenty-five  per  cent,  of  the  entire  school.  It 
is  a  real  Sunday-school  class,  meeting  with 
the  school  and  studying  the  regular  lessons. 

The  families  come  to  church  together,  sit 
together,  and  together  return  home.  It 
maintains  the  family  unit  in  worship.  It 
does  away  with  the  objectionable  class  of 
music  and  gives  the  children  a  chance  to 
sing  the  standard  hymns  of  the  church.  It 
brings  them  under  the  instruction  and  di- 
rect appeal  of  the  pastor — a  vital  point  of 
contact.  Unattended  children  are  as  de- 
corous as  those  attended  by  their  parents. 
If  a  little  child  should  forget  and  disturb, 

145 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

he  is  always  near  an  adult  who  needs  but 
to  gently  touch  his  shoulder  to  bring  him  to 
perfect  order.  The  service  is  as  dignified 
and  impressive  as  the  exclusive  service  is, 
and  very  much  more  attractive." 

Dear  Doctor  Font : 

I  am  sending  you  to-day  a  copy  of  my 
book  entitled,  "A  Junior  Congregation."  My 
conviction  confirmed  by  experience  is  that 
the  Junior  Congregation  is  the  answer  to 
your  question,  for  which  so  many  pastors 
have  been  listening;  because  a  Junior  Con- 
gregation takes  the  children  directly  from 
the  home  into  the  church  service.  It  gradu- 
ates them  from  the  junior  to  the  senior  con- 
gregation. Thanking  you  for  your  interest 
and  help  in  this  great  work,  I  am. 

Sincerely  yours, 

J.  M.  Farrar. 
Pastor  First  Reformed  Church,  Brooklyn, 
New  York. 

An  interview  between  Dr.  Farrar  and  the 
Rev.  William  Durham,  of  London,  England, 
concerning   the   Junior   Congregation,   ap- 

146 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

peared  in  the  Homiletic  Review,  from  which 
we  copy  the  following : 

To  the  question,  "How  does  your  plan 
operate?"  Dr.  Farrar  replied,  "An  invita- 
tion extended  through  the  parents,  together 
with  a  personal  solicitation  in  the  home  and 
Sabbath  school,  will  assemble  a  congrega- 
tion for  organization.  This  meeting  should 
be  held  during  the  week.  An  entertainment 
and  refreshments  appeal  to  the  juniors  as 
they  do  to  the  seniors.  A  roll  of  members  is 
carefully  made,  including  addresses,  ages, 
and  birthdays.  A  birthday  letter  from  the 
pastor  is  a  strand  in  the  cord  that  is  not 
easily  broken.  To  each  member  is  given  a 
package  of  contribution  envelopes.  The 
purpose  of  the  organization  is  explained, 
and  the  children  are  made  to  realize  that 
they  are  as  much  a  part  of  the  church  as 
they  are  a  part  of  the  home.  The  organiza- 
tion should  be  the  counterpart  of  the  senior 
organization.  As  one  object  of  a  Junior 
Congregation  is  to  train  the  children  in 
church  work,  each  denomination  will  nat- 
147 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

nrally  organize  along  the  line  of  its  own 
polity. 

"We  organize  somewhat  elaborately,  for 
no  trouble  can  be  reckoned  too  great,  con- 
sidering the  supreme  importance  of  our  ob- 
jective aim.  In  their  annual  meeting,  the 
children  hear  reports  of  their  work,  the 
amount  of  their  contributions,  and  the  ob- 
jects for  wliich  the  money  has  been  ex- 
pended. The  contributions  are  divided  by 
vote,  one-half  to  the  home  church,  the  other 
half  to  missions.  Bibles  are  presented  to 
those  who  keep  a  list  of  texts  and  outlines 
of  sermons.  In  this  meeting,  also,  the  chil- 
dren elect  their  own  officers  for  the  ensuing 
year.  The  great  result  is  that  the  children 
form  the  church  habit  and  can  be  depended 
on  in  later  years  for  church  worship  and 
work." 

"What,  Dr.  Farrar,  do  you  feel  the  key- 
note of  this  movement?" 

"I  feel  that  the  children  should  constitute 

an    integral   portion   of   the   congregation. 

Thus  they  meet  witli  the  regular  assembly, 

and  we  have  all  the  service  of  praise  and  all 

H8 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

the  worship  before  the  sermon.  In  many  in- 
stances the  children  sit  with  their  parents  in 
the  family  pew.  In  the  parable  of  the  loaves 
and  fishes,  Mark  says  that  Christ  told  his 
disciples  to  seat  the  multitudes  as  'flower- 
beds.' Buds  develop  better  when  sheltered 
by  flowers.  Chairs  from  the  Sunday  school 
room  are  placed  in  front  of  the  pulpit,  and 
the  majority  of  the  children  prefer  these 
front  seats,  close  to  the  pastor.  It  is  the 
hope  that  when  these  small  folks  become 
men  and  women  the  front  seats  in  the 
church  and  prayer-meeting  will  be  occupied. 
Following  the  general  service  of  praise  and 
Avorship  and  just  before  the  sermon  is  intro- 
duced, I  preach  a  short  sermon  to  the  jun- 
iors. My  plan  is  to  bring  the  children  up 
to  me,  rather  than  to  go  down  to  them.  For 
any  pastor  who  has  studied  children  well 
knows  that  they  do  not  like  to  be  talked 
down  to  in  baby-talk,  even  though  they  may 
speak  in  such  fashion  themselves.  A  child 
appreciates  a  straight-forward,  dignified  ad- 
dress. This  has  a  double  result.  First,  the 
child  is  honored,  and  appreciates  the  fact 
that  he  is  honored  by  the  preacher.     Sec- 

149 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

ond,  (and  this  is  of  very  great  conse- 
quence,) the  seniors  are  invariably  pro- 
foundly interested." 

"The  result  of  this  method  pursued  dur- 
ing a  series  of  years  is  that  when  the  chil- 
dren become  members  of  the  senior  congre- 
gation they  are  already  trained  workers,  fa- 
miliar with  church  methods  and  laws  and 
are  in  intelligent  sympathy  with  the  objects 
of  their  church  organization.  They  have 
formed  the  church  habit,  and  can  be  de- 
pended upon  for  church  worship  and  work. 
It  is  pleasant  to  anticipate  the  influence  of 
a  junior  congregation  so  developed  upon 
the  next  generation  of  church  workers. 

There  are  not  a  few  who  are  slow  to 
endorse  the  combination  idea,  lest  the  ele- 
ment of  worship  and  the  dignity,  stateli- 
ness,  reverence,  and  worshipfulness  that 
should  attach  to  the  service  of  God's  house 
be  sacrificed.  In  the  judgment  of  many  the 
ideal  plan  is  for  a  morning  service  of  wor- 
ship and  an  afternoon  service  for  Bible 
study,  in  which  the  people  of  the  churcli  and 
the  classes  come  together  for  that  purpose 
— the  pastor  of  the  church  to  have  charge  of 

150 


The  Sunday  School  and  Public  Worship 

the  gathering  and  devote  as  much  of  his 
time  to  it  as  to  any  other  department  of  the 
church. 

A  recent  issue  of  the  "British  Weekly," 
mentions  an  organization  in  the  Trinity 
Parish  of  Aberdeen,  known  as  the  "Young 
Peoples  Guild,"  which  endeavors  to  secure 
the  signatures  of  young  people  to  this 
pledge:  "I  now  bear  witness  that  I  am  a 
lover  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  and  in 
order  that  I  may  be  able  worthily  to  spend 
my  life  in  love  and  in  remembrance  of  Him, 
I  also  promise  that,  with  the  help  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  I  shall  try  to  attend  the  house 
of  God  at  least  once  every  Sunday,  and  to 
join  in  the  public  worship  of  the  Heavenly 
Father,  the  one  God  from  whom  cometh 
every  good  and  perfect  gift."  The  guild  is 
reported  to  have  brought  great  blessing  to 
the  church,  and  also  a  great  blessing  to  the 
children  and  young  people. 

While  the  point  of  perfection  has  not  been 
attained,  pastors  and  church  workers  gen- 
erally were  never  so  determined  as  at  pres- 
ent to  unitedly  lift  actual  conditions  to  a 

151 


The  Child  and  the  Church 

plane  more  nearly  ideal,  realizing  that  all 
possible  completeness  of  vision  and  practice 
is  the  true  educational  and  religious  aim. 
And  out  of  this  confusion  of  ideas  and  mul- 
tiplicity of  schemes  and  experiments  will 
come,  in  the  not  far  distant  future,  the  per- 
fected plan — a  practical  solution  to  the 
problem  of  Sunday  school  and  the  church 
service. 


152 


DATE  DUE 

nrx  ft  1 

'fiQ 

*<e«.«i«»i..M.j..  ,- 

CATLORD 

PRINTCOINU    t.A 

BX9878.5  .F783 

The  child  and  the  church 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1    1012  00044  8359 


